Michael is a Churchill Fellow and owner of In Safe Hands Educators In Safety, a child safety consultancy company operating in Australia. But in his other life he is the Head of High Performance for Serbia Cricket Federation, a volunteer role he performs from both Australia and in Europe. Since being appointed to the role in late 2024, Michael has implemented a high-performance program across the cricket Federation to build the capacity and infrastructure to produce talented cricket players to represent Serbia in International Cricket globally.
Building from his knowledge of Cricket he built from his representative playing career and administration positions in the sport in Australia, Michael has been able to implement a High-performance Program underlined by the values of grit, selflessness, and connection within Serbia Cricket. With a vision of growing talent within and concentrating on youth development, the National men’s squad consists of three players under 16 years, and five players under 21 years. The Serbia International team was by far the youngest team competing in the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup European qualifiers.
His role has included the identification of cricket players with Serbia family heritage around the world and introducing high level coaching, fitness, and mental health programs into the domestic cricket league in Serbia. Cricket is a new sport in Serbia, meaning Michael has had to work with Government and business community with Serbia to identify sponsorship and endorsement opportunities to support the implementation of the High-performance cricket Program.
His vision, dedication and unwavering commitment to developing cricket in Serbia have helped transform the sport’s prospects in the country, making Michael Pecic a fitting recipient of the 2026 Unsung Hero Award.
