Land of Djokovic and European champions

The Serbia water polo national team yesterday claimed the European Championship and joined the men’s and women’s volleyball teams who already hold that crown. On Sunday as well, Serbia’s and world’s number one tennis player, Novak Djokovic, confirmed his stellar status by winning the Australian Open, while the men’s handball team win silver at the Euros played in Serbia.

Novak Djokovic

The time has come for Serbia to be recognised as a land of Novak and European champions.

- What separates us from the rest is our enormous wish to prove ourselves, to be successful and reach glory. These virtues stem from our mentality, from our struggle for survival imposed on the lesser and poorer ones, says Serbia’s former legendary volleyball player Vladimir Grbic.

His belief is it is no coincidence Serbian athletes dominate continental and global competitions.

- I would put it down to a surplus of emotion, a killer instinct in a sporting sense. It is no miracle a lot of great top athletes are products of environments where it is important to know how to battle for survival.

Serbian water polo team

Argentina has something similar to this, and that’s why the rich ones want us on board and pay well to have us. The readiness of domestic athletes to take responsibility in key moments is a matter of character, according to Grbic.

- We have the guts when the going gets tough – it’s in our blood. We are principally self-willed individuals and we don’t gel into a group that easily. But when it does happen that we begin to tick as a collective out on the sporting battlefield then it’s as if we have an extra player out there.

You can see it on volleyball and handball courts, water polo swimming pools, while Djokovic is a special phenomenon, one who benefited from the sacrifice of his own family which eventually produced a world class player, said Grbic.

Serbian handball team

Former basketball legend Drazen Dalipagic attributes the golden days of both individual and team sport from Serbia to multiple roots.

- There is the tradition, the innate talent and hard work. That is why we have our athletes playing three big finals in one day, says Dalipagic.

He also points to continuity of success as a major factor.

- In my time while I was playing at Partizan we put in a tremendous effort. You can have a generation failing to produce outstanding individuals, but eventually we turn up big.

The same goes for the Serbia basketball team – after a crisis of result we were then runners-up at the EuroBasket and came fourth at the World Championships.