Croatia men's national water polo team

The Croatia men's national water polo team represents Croatia in international water polo competitions and is controlled by the Croatian Water Polo Federation. They have won gold medals in the Olympics, World and European Championships, FINA World League and Mediterranean Games, making them one of the most successful men's water polo teams in the world.

Croatia
FINA codeCRO
Nickname(s)Barakude
(The Barracudas)
AssociationCroatian Water Polo Federation
ConfederationLEN (Europe)
Head coachIvica Tucak
Asst coachMile Smodlaka
Sandro Sukno
CaptainAndro Bušlje
Most capsIgor Hinić (417)
Top scorer(s)Miho Bošković (369)
FINA ranking (since 2008)
Current5 (as of 9 August 2021)
Highest1 (2012, 2013)
Lowest6 (2008)
Olympic Games (team statistics)
Appearances6 (first in 1996)
Best result (2012)
5-time Olympian(s)Igor Hinić (1996–2012)
Most medalsPerica Bukić (3 medals, 2 gold and 1 silver)
Top scorer(s)Sandro Sukno (31 goals, 2012–2016)
Most savesFrano Vićan (123 saves, 2000–2012)
Top sprinter(s)Maro Joković (25 sprints won, 2008–2016)
Flag bearer(s)Perica Bukić (1996)
Dubravko Šimenc (2004)
Josip Pavić (2016)
World Championship
Appearances12 (first in 1994)
Best result (2007, 2017)
World Cup
Appearances7 (first in 1995)
Best result (2010)
World League
Appearances9 (first in 2002)
Best result (2012)
European Championship
Appearances14 (first in 1993)
Best result (2010)
Europa Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2018)
Best result (2018)
Mediterranean Games
Appearances6 (first in 1993)
Best result (2013)
Media
Websitehvs.hr (in Croatian)
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 1 2 0
World Championship 2 1 4
World Cup 0 1 1
World League 1 3 3
European Championship 1 2 1
Europa Cup 1 1 0
Mediterranean Games 1 1 1
Total 7 11 10
Olympic Games
2012 London Team
1996 Atlanta Team
2016 Rio de Janeiro Team
World Championship
2007 Melbourne Team
2017 Budapest Team
2015 Kazan Team
2009 Rome Team
2011 Shanghai Team
2013 Barcelona Team
2019 Gwangju Team
World Cup
2010 Oradea
2014 Almaty
World League
2012 Almaty
2009 Podgorica
2015 Bergamo
2019 Belgrade
2010 Niš
2011 Florence
2017 Ruza
European Championship
2010 Zagreb
1999 Florence
2003 Kranj
2018 Barcelona
Europa Cup
2018 Rijeka
2019 Zagreb
Mediterranean Games
2013 Mersin
1993 Languedoc-Roussillon
1997 Bari

They are Croatia's most successful national team, having won more titles than all other Croatian national teams.

It was the first Croatian national team after the Handball National Team (Olympics 1996) to win a gold medal at the Olympics or World Games, the World and European Championships.

History

After the independence of Croatia the national water polo team competed at its first tournament and also its first finals at 1993 Mediterranean Games, followed by the 1993 European Championships where Croatia won 5th place.

Croatia has since become Olympic champion (2012), double World champion (2007, 2017) and European champion (2010). Croatia has also won eight other medals at the Olympic Games, World Championships and European Championships and was fourth on six occasions. The team holds a record streak of winning 7 medals in a row at World Championships and has reached semi-finals in over 60% of appearances at the Olympic Games, World Championships and European Championships altogether since 2017. Since the formation of national team Croatia has qualified for every big tournament. It is the first Croatian national team in any Olympic team sport that has won gold medals at all three big competitions. Croatia has also won World League (2012) and Mediterranean Games (2013). The only competition Croatia has yet to win is World Cup where the national team won silver medal in 2010.

The team has been awarded with Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport in 1996. So far two International Swimming Hall of Fame inductees have been members of Croatia national team – Perica Bukić as a player and Ratko Rudić as a coach.

Results

Medals

Updated after 2020 FINA Men's Water Polo World League

CompetitionTotal
Olympic Games 1203
World Championship 2147
World Cup 0112
World League 1337
European Championship 1214
Europa Cup 1102
Mediterranean Games 1113
Total7111028

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place  

Summer Olympics
Main article: Croatia men's Olympic water polo team records and statistics
Year[1] Round Position Pld W D L GF GA GD
1992Couldn't participate in qualification
1996Final85037158+13
2000Quarterfinal7th85126856+12
2004Preliminary Round10th62044742+5
2008Quarterfinal6th74037149+22
2012Final88007342+31
2016Final85036662+4
2020Quarterfinal5th85039982+17
TotalQualified: 7/75737119553419+124

Record against other teams at the Summer Olympics
National team Pld W D L PF PA PD
Australia22012925+4
China1100164+12
Egypt1100121+11
Germany1100135+8
Greece33002516+9
Hungary21011617−1
Italy54014535+10
Kazakhstan22004015+25
Montenegro31012620+6
Netherlands1100117+4
Romania1100116+5
Russia100189−1
Serbia32013231+1
Serbia and Montenegro31112021−1
Spain41033034−4
Ukraine1100168+8
United States62044542+3
Total17 teams

World Championships

World Cup

World League

Wins/Defeats after penalty shootout counted as wins/defeats.
* marks instances of not qualifying for the super final due to "host rule".

Year[1] Round Position Pld W D L
2002Did not qualify for the Super Final122010
2003Did not compete
2004
2005Group Round4th14806
2006 *Did not qualify for the Super Final11704
20078305
2008 *6303
2009Final12903
2010Semi-final12804
2011Semi-final111001
2012Final101000
2013 *Did not qualify for the Super Final6402
20144103
2015Final141202
2016Did not qualify for the Super Final6402
2017Semi-final121002
2018Quarterfinal5th10703
2019Final6402
TotalParticipated: 16/18
Qualified for the Super Final: 9/16		154102052

European Championships

LEN Europa Cup
Year Round Position Pld W D L
2018Final8701
2019Final 7502
TotalParticipated: 2/2
Qualified for the Super Final: 2/2		151203

Mediterranean Games
Year Round Position Pld W D L
1993Final
1997Final
2001Preliminary Round5th
2005Semi-final4th5203
2009Semi-final4th5302
2013Final4400
2018Did not participate
TotalParticipated: 6/714905

Team

Current squad

Roster for the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Head coach: Ivica Tucak[3]

No. Player Pos. L/R Height Weight Date of birth (age) Apps OG/
Goals		 Club Ref
1 Marko Bijač 10GK 2R 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 88 kg (194 lb) (1991-01-12)12 January 1991 (aged 30) 96 1/0 Olympiacos [4]
2 Marko Macan 20CB 2R 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 109 kg (240 lb) (1993-04-26)26 April 1993 (aged 28) 109 1/0 Waspo 98 Hannover [5]
3 Loren Fatović 50D 2R 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 84 kg (185 lb) (1996-11-16)16 November 1996 (aged 24) 70 0/0 Jug Dubrovnik [6]
4 Luka Lončar 40CF 2R 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 106 kg (234 lb) (1987-06-26)26 June 1987 (aged 34) 182 1/4 Pro Recco [7]
5 Maro Joković 50D 1L 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) 96 kg (212 lb) (1987-10-01)1 October 1987 (aged 33) 292 3/27 Brescia [8]
6 Luka Bukić 50D 2R 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 90 kg (198 lb) (1994-04-30)30 April 1994 (aged 27) 55 1/5 Jadran Split [9]
7 Ante Vukičević 50D 2R 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) 95 kg (209 lb) (1993-02-24)24 February 1993 (aged 28) 65 0/0 Marseille [10]
8 Andro Bušlje (C) 20CB 2R 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) 115 kg (254 lb) (1986-01-04)4 January 1986 (aged 35) 360 3/14 Olympiacos [11]
9 Lovre Miloš 50D 2R 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 94 kg (207 lb) (1994-04-05)5 April 1994 (aged 27) 41 0/0 HAVK Mladost [12]
10 Josip Vrlić 40CF 2R 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 130 kg (287 lb) (1986-04-25)25 April 1986 (aged 35) 44 1/4 HAVK Mladost [13]
11 Paulo Obradović 20CB 2R 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) 100 kg (220 lb) (1986-03-09)9 March 1986 (aged 35) 180 1/5 Jug Dubrovnik [14]
12 Xavier García 50D 1L 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 92 kg (203 lb) (1984-01-05)5 January 1984 (aged 37) 385 4/25 Jug Dubrovnik [15]
13 Ivan Marcelić 10GK 2R 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) 106 kg (234 lb) (1994-02-18)18 February 1994 (aged 27) 85 0/0 HAVK Mladost [16]
Average 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 100 kg (220 lb) 31 years, 67 days 151

Note: Age as of 23 July 2021
Source: Croatia Men | Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Player statistics

Head coaches

Notable players

Naturalized players

Andrey Belofastov (Ukraine), Xavier García (Spain)[17] Faris Okanovic (Sweden)

Statistics

Record against other teams

As of 1 August 2021

NO FRIENDLY fixtures.

Key
Positive total balance (more wins)
Neutral total balance (equal W/L ratio)
Negative total balance (more losses)

Wins/Defeats after penalty shootout counted as wins/defeats.

National team Total Olympic Games World Championship World Cup World League European Championship Europa Cup Mediterranean Games Qualifications
Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L
Australia 191604 2201 7601 2101 8701 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Austria 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 1100 0000 ———— 0000
Belarus 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Brazil 8701 1100 4400 0000 3201 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Canada 7700 0000 5500 0000 1100 ———— ———— ———— 1100
China 6600 1100 2200 1100 2200 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Egypt 1100 1100 0000 0000 0000 ———— ———— 0000 0000
France 10901 1001 0000 0000 4400 3300 1100 0000 1100
Georgia 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Germany 262024 1100 2101 0000 121101 9522 0000 ———— 2200
Great Britain 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Greece 372449 3201 3102 2110 14905 11830 2101 2200 0000
Hungary 369225 2101 8413 3003 11308 121110 0000 ———— 0000
Iran 1100 0000 0000 1100 0000 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Italy 4223217 6501 5212 2002 14806 11614 0000 3102 1100
Japan 5500 0000 3300 0000 2200 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Kazakhstan 101000 3300 2200 1100 4400 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Macedonia 4400 0000 0000 0000 4400 0000 0000 0000 0000
Malta 2200 0000 0000 0000 0000 1100 1100 0000 0000
Moldova 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Montenegro 261709 5401 3300 1100 9306 6402 1100 0000 1100
Netherlands 141400 1100 2200 1100 4400 5500 1100 ———— 0000
New Zealand 3300 0000 3300 0000 0000 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Poland 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Puerto Rico 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— ———— ———— 1100
Romania 171403 1100 3300 1100 4301 4202 1100 ———— 3300
Russia 3523111 1100 7403 2101 181305 6411 0000 ———— 1001
Serbia * 4414426 6312 6213 7214 11209 9216 3300 2002 0000
Slovakia 9801 0000 1100 0000 0000 7601 0000 ———— 1100
Slovenia 6600 0000 0000 0000 0000 3300 0000 1100 2200
South Africa 5500 0000 2200 1100 2200 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Spain 3717218 5104 3003 5014 11605 7511 2200 4301 0000
Turkey 101000 0000 0000 0000 6600 2200 0000 2200 0000
Switzerland 1100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 ———— 1100
Ukraine 4400 1100 0000 0000 0000 3300 0000 ———— 0000
United States 3524011 7304 8701 7502 13904 ———— ———— ———— 0000
Total (36) 46831117140

* includes games against  Serbia and Montenegro / FR Yugoslavia

Biggest wins

double digit goal difference

Olympic Games World Championship World Cup World League European Championship Europa Cup Mediterranean Games Qualifications
  • +12 vs. China (16–4) 2008
  • +11 vs. Egypt (12–1) 2004
  • +34 vs. New Zealand (35–1) 1994
  • +19 vs. South Africa (19–0) 2013
  • +17 vs. New Zealand (21–4) 2013
  • +16 vs. New Zealand (19–3) 1998
  • +15 vs. Canada (19–4) 2005
  • +15 vs. Kazakhstan (19–4) 1998
  • +11 vs. Brasil (17–6) 1998
  • +11 vs. Japan (18–7) 2011
  • +10 vs. Canada (13–3) 2003
  • +10 vs. China (15–5) 2009
  • +10 vs. Japan (16–6) 2017
  • +10 vs. Russia (13–3) 2007
  • +23 vs. South Africa (25–2) 2018
  • +21 vs. Iran (23–2) 2010
  • +13 vs. South Africa (16–3) 2018
  • +10 vs. China (14–4) 2010
  • +21 vs. South Africa (22–1) 2010
  • +19 vs. Turkey (20–1) 2013
  • +17 vs. Brasil (20–3) 2012
  • +16 vs. Kazakhstan (20–4) 2019
  • +16 vs. Kazakhstan (19–3) 2017
  • +14 vs. Turkey (17–3) 2013
  • +13 vs. Spain (19–6) 2006
  • +13 vs. Turkey (19–6) 2016
  • +13 vs. Turkey (16–3) 2016
  • +11 vs. Netherlands (18–7) 2017
  • +10 vs. Brasil (17–7) 2005
  • +10 vs. China (15–5) 2011
  • +10 vs. China (14–4) 2015
  • +10 vs. France (16–6) 2017
  • +10 vs. Kazahstan (15–5) 2018
  • +10 vs. Netherlands (17–7) 2017
  • +10 vs. Russia (14–4) 2018
  • +10 vs. Turkey (13–3) 2015
  • +24 vs. Austria (26–2) 1995
  • +21 vs. Turkey (23–2) 2018
  • +20 vs. Malta (22–2) 2016
  • +15 vs. France (20–5) 2016
  • +13 vs. Turkey (16–3) 2010
  • +12 vs. Netherlands (16–4) 2012
  • +11 vs. Slovenia (19–8) 2006
  • +10 vs. Slovakia (15–5) 2008
  • +15 vs. France (20–5) 2018
  • +12 vs. Netherlands (16–4) 2018
  • +11 vs. Malta (16–5) 2018
  • +13 vs. Turkey (17–4) 2013
  • +11 vs. Greece (14–3) 2009
  • +20 vs. Georgia (23–3) 1999
  • +17 vs. Puerto Rico (18–1) 2004
  • +12 vs. Romania (12–0) 2004

Biggest losses
Olympic Games World Championship World Cup World League European Championship Europa Cup Mediterranean Games
  • -4 vs. Italy (7–11) 2004
  • -7 vs. Serbia (4–11) 2015
  • -6 vs. Hungary (4–10) 2005
  • -5 vs. Spain (6–11) 1994
  • -6 vs. Serbia (7–13) 2010
  • -5 vs. Hungary (6–11) 1997
  • -5 vs. Russia (5–10) 1997
  • -5 vs. Spain (2–7) 1995
  • -9 vs. Hungary (6–15) 2007
  • -8 vs. Greece (5–13) 2008
  • -7 vs. Brasil (10–17) 2015
  • -7 vs. Serbia (6–13) 2016
  • -6 vs. Hungary (5–11) 1995
  • -5 vs. Hungary (11–16) 2006
  • -9 vs. Italy (5–14) 2005
  • -6 vs. Serbia (8–14) 2009

Non-senior competitions

Awards

See also

Notes
  1. FINA Water Polo Player of the Year in 1982, 1984 and 1985. Scored 28 goals in one game which is a world record for water polo game (final score: Yugoslavia 62–0 Guatemala). First water polo player in history to sign a 6 digit contract.

References
  1. "HistoFINA – Water polo medalists and statistics" (PDF). fina.org. FINA. September 2019. pp. 4, 14, 25, 40, 48. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 August 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  2. Qualification for the tournament was determined by placing in the 1992 Olympics tournament. Since the Croatian team couldn't had participated in the 1992 Olympic water polo tournament due to the dissolution of Yugoslavia, it couldn't qualify for the 1993 World Cup.
  3. "Water Polo - TUCAK Ivica". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  4. "BIJAC Marko". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  5. "MACAN Marko". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  6. "FATOVIC Loren". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  7. "LONCAR Luka". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  8. "JOKOVIC Maro". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  9. "BUKIC Luka". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  10. "VUKICEVIC Ante". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  11. "BUSLJE Andro". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  12. "MILOS Lovre". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  13. "VRLIC Josip". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  14. "OBRADOVIC Paulo". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  15. "GARCIA GADEA Javier". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  16. "MARCELIC Ivan". olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  17. "Stigla potvrda iz MOO-a: Javier Garcia s Hrvatskom na Olimpijskim igrama u Riju".
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