President Milanović Receives Young Water Polo Players and Congratulates Them on Winning Gold at the World Championship
The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović today received members of Croatia’s U-18 men’s national water polo team and congratulated them on winning the gold medal at the U-18 World Water Polo Championship held in Portugal in early July this year. The young athletes were accompanied by members of the national team’s coaching staff and representatives of the Croatian Water Polo Federation.
“This is a great success. Congratulations to all of you. I believe that we will celebrate your future successes as well, just as we are celebrating this one,” President Milanović told the young water polo players.
On behalf of the team, the President of the Croatian Water Polo Federation Mladen Drnasin thanked the President of the Republic for the reception, which, he said, meant a great deal to the young water polo players. “They achieved an outstanding result, and they deserve the greatest credit for it. I hope that in the coming years they will once again give us reason to invite them to the Office of the President,” Drnasin said.
The U-18 World Water Polo Championship was held in Rio Maior, Portugal, where Croatia’s U-18 men’s national water polo team won the gold medal in the final match against the United States junior national team, thereby taking the championship title from Hungary. On their way to the gold medal, the young Croatian water polo players defeated Hungary, Serbia, Italy and Spain – all formidable water polo nations.
During their conversation with the President, they also recalled the circumstances that made the gold medal an even greater achievement: the young water polo team came together literally just before the start of the competition, with little time for joint preparations, while some players were simultaneously taking their State Matura exams.
Present at the Office of the President of the Republic were members of the junior water polo team Nikola Batoš, Marin Bajurin, Dominik Beljan, Matej Šorić, Filip Rogić, Deni Sappe, Mihael Mladineo, Ivano Lončar, Nardo Dragaš, Toma Drobac, Nikola Ferić, Toni Galušić, Nardo Skejić and Duje Burazin. They were accompanied by Hrvoje Koljanin, head coach of the U-18 national team, Emil Nikolić, head of the youth national teams, and Andro Petrić, sports official. The Croatian Water Polo Federation delegation consisted of Mladen Drnasin, President of the Croatian Water Polo Federation; Perica Bukić, Executive Vice President of the Croatian Water Polo Federation; Ratko Rudić, President of the Croatian Water Polo Federation Expert Council; Ivan Milaković, Secretary General of the Croatian Water Polo Federation; and Milivoj Bebić, Member of the Executive Board and President of the Olympians Club.
President Milanović was accompanied by Tomislav Paškvalin, Commissioner of the President of the Republic for Sports.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Marko Beljan