Split/Zagreb, Croatia. The 15th edition of the Croatian Beach Volleyball championship ended this past weekend at the iconic sunny beach of Podstrana, near Split. After previous successful performances delivered at the earlier stops in Zagreb and Pula, KOP Opatija and KOP Siget emerged as the eventual winners of the competition in beautiful Podstrana.
The women’s team of KOP Siget played 14 matches, recording 10 wins and 4 draws in the process, thus justifying their role of event pre-favourites. KOP Žnjan finished in second place, followed by ŽKOP Jarun, HAOK Žal Banjole, KOP ?akovec, KOP Retfala, KOP Opatija and AOK Osijek.
In the men’s competition, KOP Opatija stayed undefeated as well, with a record of 12 wins and 2 draws. KOP Siget, with three points less, ended in second place, followed by KOP Žnjan, KOP Zagreb, KOP ?akovec, KOP Retfala, HAOK Žal Banjole and KOP ?azma.
“This was one of the most competitive championships in the last ten years, because all the best Croatian Beach Volleyball players featured in the event, with further depth provided by players from Serbia and Slovenia, who raised the competition to an even higher level. On behalf of the Croatian Volleyball Federation, I have to thank the cities of Podstrana, Pula and Zagreb for their great cooperation and help with the organisation, especially with respecting all the additional measures that we needed to implement. During this tough COVID-19 crisis, we managed to give our players a much-needed competition, as we did not organise this year’s edition of the ‘individual’ Croatian championship in Beach Volleyball,” said Frane Žani? of the Croatian Volleyball Federation.
Beach Volleyball activities in Croatia will continue in August, with the club under-age championship in Pula and Split, and the Croatian Beach Volleyball Cup, which will run from August 14 to 16 in Zagreb.
Sources:
CEV – European Volleyball
HOS – Croatian Volleyball Federation
