February 1, 2023 - Goran Perkovac, the captain of the Croatia national team that won gold at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, is the new coach of the Croatia men's handball team.
Hrvoje Horvat is no longer the coach of the Croatia men's handball team. Immediately after the World Handball Championship, where Croatia took ninth place in the overall standings, the Croatian Handball Federation assessed that result as a failure, but also prolonged the decision on Horvat's fate until the statement of professional coordinator Lino Červar. The decision has been made, and Horvat has been removed from his position. Goran Perkovac will succeed him.
Goran Perkovac was the captain of the Croatia national team that won gold at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. The native of Slatina was also the world runner-up at the World Champs in Iceland in 1995, the European bronze medalist in Portugal in 1994, and a double gold medalist from the Mediterranean Games. In addition, Perkovac was the coach of Switzerland, Greece, and Germany for many years.
"After the last meeting of the Croatia men's senior national team at the World Handball Championship in Sweden and Poland and the victory against Bahrain (43:32), i.e., 9th place, the Croatian Handball Federation informs the public that it is not satisfied with the achieved result and considers it a failure. The minimum goal placed in front of the coach and the national team was the quarter-finals.
Since it has not been realized, the Croatian Handball Federation is waiting for the statement of professional coordinator Lino Červar about the status of the coach and the further sequence of events. Namely, the Croatian Handball Federation system is set up so that the coordinator proposes the national team coaches. After that, the decision is adopted or rejected by the Croatian Handball Federation Board of Directors," HRS announced eight days ago.
Horvat was Červar's assistant on the national team and succeeded him as the coach. However, he failed to return Croatia to the top of the world handball, and he will be remembered for the bizarre interview after Croatia's last match at the World Championship in Sweden and Poland.
Recall Horvat stood in front of RTL cameras and started the conversation by creating a heart with his fingers and directing it toward the camera.
"At the moment, I can't wait to see my family, then I will decide on my future," he answered. When asked about a possible resignation, he opened his mouth, pretending to answer whether he had the support of the Croatian Handball Federation. However, he didn't want to say whether that result was a failure. Instead, he said that he made some promises and that those were too intimate answers.
Source: Index.hr
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