https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iW1gM1bTOvA

Feature documentary by Steiv Silm

Magnus Kirt:

COMEBACK

Hard work always beats talent.

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Story about a comeback

Magnus Kirt is one javelin throw from the world title when his shoulder dislocates in front of millions. Years of battling injury force him to ask: what is a comeback, when there is no going back to who you were?

Magnus Kirt grows up on his father’s teaching that hard work always beats talent, and that in the end the work brings its reward. Together they dream of Olympic gold, but then his father dies unexpectedly. The top of the world is still far away. His best friend from childhood, a man who knows nothing about the javelin, steps in beside him. The two are bound by a promise they made to him: what you start, you finish. Years of work begin to pay off. Magnus throws beyond 90 metres and becomes the world number one.

At the World Championships in Doha the title is within reach when his shoulder dislocates on the fifth attempt, with one throw still to come. The silver medal is the start of an entirely different contest. Surgeries, recovery and one new injury after another push the Olympic dream further away, but Magnus responds to every setback with even more work. Exactly as his father taught him. What you start, you finish. But when the reward never comes after all, it is not only his career that is in question. It is everything he has built his life on.

People,
who shaped the story

Athlete

Magnus Kirt

Magnus Kirt is an Estonian javelin thrower from the small town of Tõrva, who rose to the very top of world athletics through relentless work and discipline. He is a multiple-time Estonian champion, a European Championships bronze medallist, and a World Championships silver medallist. Kirt has been ranked world number one and was named Estonian Sportsman of the Year on two occasions. His career embodies the ambition and determination that carried him from a small-town training ground to the biggest stages in the world.

Fiancé

Laura Ikauniece

Laura Ikauniece is a Latvian athletics star who has won heptathlon medals at both the European Championships and the World Championships, and has been named Latvian Sportswoman of the Year on two occasions. She is regarded as one of the most accomplished multi-event athletes of her generation, consistently competing at the highest international level. She is also the fiancée and life partner of Magnus Kirt, standing by his side through both major triumphs and the most challenging moments.

Coach-manager

Marek Vister

Marek Vister is the childhood friend of Magnus Kirt who, through unexpected turns of fate, became his coach and manager despite having no formal background in athletics. Together, they rose to the highest level of the sport and achieved major international titles. Vister was later named Estonian Coach of the Year. A restless spirit, driven by kindness and a deep belief in people.

Coach - Physiotherapist

Indrek Tustit

Indrek Tustit is a world-class physiotherapist and highly regarded coach whose experience reaches the absolute elite of professional sport. He has worked with Olympic champion Gerd Kanter as well as several world-class tennis players. Within Team Kirt’s coaching staff, Tustit was regarded as the strategic mind whose collective work helped Magnus Kirt reach the very highest level in the world. Together with Marek Vister, he was also named Estonian Coach of the Year.

Legend

Toomas Merila

Toomas Merila is a legendary Estonian javelin coach who has devoted more than half a century to the discipline, working with nearly every top javelin thrower the country has produced. As an athlete, his personal best of exactly 70.00 metres sparked a lifelong pursuit to understand how to throw farther — a quest that ultimately led him into coaching. For Magnus Kirt, Merila is a Coach with a capital “C,” an authority and mentor whose advice he continues to seek and value to this day.

Father

Peeter Kirt

Peeter was the father of Magnus Kirt and a legend in the town of Tõrva, whose dedication to sport and community went far beyond what was considered normal. In the 1990s, he set himself the goal of taking young athletes from a small town to the Olympic Games, even at a time when Estonia lacked something as basic as a proper bobsleigh track — and he made it possible. With the same tireless spirit, he worked to create sporting opportunities and a strong sense of community in Tõrva. To many, he was a superhuman; to everyone, a man who taught by example how to believe in big dreams.

People, who brought the story to the screen

Director · Co-producer

Steiv Silm

Director Steiv Silm is Estonia’s most active and prolific creator of sports documentaries, whose work focuses on the human stories behind elite performance. He is the creator of the documentary series “Võidu nimel” and the director and producer of the films “Two Hearts”, “Ragnar Klavan: Everything is possible”, and “Iron man – Andres Krestinov”. In addition, he has created and led numerous sports history television documentaries and programs, capturing the moments and personalities that have shaped Estonian sport.

Producer

Ülo Pikkov

Ülo Pikkov is an award-winning director and producer whose work has received recognition both in Estonia and internationally. His greatest creative passions lie in documentary filmmaking and animation, where he is known for a strong authorial voice and distinctive visual approach. Ülo Pikkov is also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, placing him among the most influential figures in global cinema.

Co-writer · Consultant

Kaarel Kuurmaa

Kaarel Kuurmaa is one of Estonia’s most respected documentary film experts, serving on this project as both co-writer and consultant. He has worked as a curator for several international film festivals and is also one of the organizers of the DocPoint documentary film festival. His international perspective and deep knowledge of contemporary documentary cinema provide the film with a strong dramaturgical and conceptual foundation.

Operators

Madis Reimund · Taavi Arus

Editors

Jaak Ollino · Steiv Silm

Additional shots

Kullar Viimne · Mattias Veermets · Aleksei Kulikov · Manuel Mägi · Frank-Leander Sapego · Egnar Hernits · Steiv Silm

Editorial consultants

Kristjan Kalkun · Heilika Pikkov · Tanel Toom

Composer

Lauri Kadalipp

Sound engineer

Indrek Soe

Sound operators

Rein Fuks · Tanel Kadalipp · Tanel Paats · Indrek Soe · Gert Mäll

Graphic design

Joosep Volk

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