July 15, 2022 - Great promotion for Istria - Medulin and Pula will host the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships!

Tokyo will host the World Athletics Championships in 2025, the members of the World Athletics Executive Committee decided at a meeting in Eugene, where the 18th edition of the World Championships will be held until July 24, reports Gol.hr. 

At the same meeting, it was decided that Medulin and Pula will host the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships, and two years later, that competition will be held in the American city of Tallahassee, Florida.

"It is a great honor for Croatia and the Croatian Athletics Federation to host the 2024 World Athletic Cross Country Championships. We are grateful to World Athletics for the trust shown, and now it is up to us to present Croatia, Istria, Medulin, and Pula, as well as the World Athletics Cross Country Championships in 18 months in the best light," said the president of the Croatian Athletics Federation, Ivan Veštić, and added:

"The best Europeans ran in Medulin in 2002, and in 2024 the world's best runners will compete on the most beautiful cross-country course in the world."

Tokyo beat Nairobi, Katowice, and Singapore in the race to host the Athletics World Championships.

"In the strong competition of candidates to host the 2025 World Athletics Championships, Tokyo has presented an exceptional candidacy. I hope that bringing the world's athletics elite to Tokyo again will be a shining example for Japan, which will celebrate 100 years since the founding of the National Association of Athletics Federations in 2025," said the president of World Athletics Sebastian Coe.

Tokyo will host the World Championships for the second time in history. The first time it was host in 1991 when the third edition of the World Athletics Championships was held, while 34 years later, the 20th edition will be held.

Next year, Budapest will host the 19th edition of the World Athletics Championships.

To read more about sports in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

May the 18th, 2022 - The Medulin solar power goal has been given a very welcome spring in its step in the form of a cash injection worth 3.06 million kuna in total.

One of the Republic of Croatia's (many) natural riches is the sheer amount of hours of unfiltered sunshine it gets on an annual basis, and one way in which Croatia could save an incredible amount of money, time and contribute in a very positive way to protecting the environment would be to continue to invest heavily in its solar power capacities. The Medulin solar power aim will certainly be launched thanks to this latest sum.

As Morski writes, based on the application of the Municipality of Medulin for the "Energy and Climate Change" programme, the Ministry of Regional Development and European Union (EU) Funds recently passed a decision on financing a project proposal entitled: "Increasing the capacity for solar energy production in public facilities of the Municipality of Medulin" in the amount of 3.06 million kuna. The Municipality of Medulin provided 287,889.00 kuna from its own funds for the project.

The project foresees the installation of seven photovoltaic power plants on the roofs of multiple buildings across Medulin, and each of the installed FNEs will be connected to the existing electricity network, with the aim of consuming most of the electricity produced at the facility and the eventual handover of "surplus" electricity which has also been produced back to the public electricity network, local portal Istra24 has learned.

The realisation of this praiseworthy project will enable the production of 0.234 MW from solar energy alone, resulting in savings and a better approach in regard to climate change and environmental protection. The newly installed capacities of the Municipality of Medulin for the use of energy from renewable sources will contribute to an increase in solar energy production by 330.42 MWh/year, while annual CO2 emissions will be reduced by as much as 52.41, according to a statement from the Municipality of Medulin.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

August the 6th, 2021 - We recently wrote an article which looked into the old joke about German tourists waking up at the crack of dawn to strategically position their towels down by the pool or on the beach before anyone else got the same idea. Of course, this classic move isn't limited solely to Germans, and now Croatian communal wardens will be confiscating the belongings of anyone trying that old trick in one Istrian town.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Croatian communal wardens have been arriving at various beaches in Medulin (Istria) at 08:00 in the morning, and picking up quite literally everything they find.

''If you aren't nearby to apologise and get your items back there and then, you'll find them in front of the Medulin Municipality building on the floor,'' explained one reader, who left her things on the beach. When she returned, everything had been removed, according to a report from 24sata.

''When you return you're in shock because your towels and everything else are just gone and you don't know who stole them. Then one good soul finds herself watching all of this and tells you that you have to go into Medulin to get your things back. What's even more absurd is that you have to pay a fine of 250 kuna otherwise you won't get your stuff back!

Our towels that we actually use for some purpose are just treated like trash in their opinion when they’re just thrown down on the floor. That just happened to me, and I was with a small three-month-old baby. I managed to take photos of the things they wardens refused to return to me.

We contacted the head of the Administrative Department for Communal Construction and Maintenance (Municipality of Medulin) Goran Perusko, and he told us that since the beginning of this tourist season Croatian communal wardens have been carrying out an action in which they collect towels and other stuff from the beach that people leave there during the night,'' the reader stated.

''People leave their towels on the beach during the night and early morning to''‘reserve'' the best positions. We've been carrying out this action all season so far. We were contacted by a lady who also complained about it, and we will see what happened and why her things were removed from her,'' said Perusko.

For more, follow our lifestyle section.

April 18, 2021 - Four surviving noble pen shells in Pula and Medulin have been caged for protection.

Morski.hr reports that four noble pen shells (Pinna Nobilis), named Tara and Sara in Pula, and Mara and Pina in Medulin, have survived in the wild despite the plague that has gripped the entire Mediterranean in recent years.

Metal cages were set up to protect the surviving specimens from potential predators, which are also, unfortunately, humans. The openings on them are small enough to stop gilthead seabream, octopus, and bumpy starfish and large enough to allow seawater flow with phytoplankton and zooplankton that Pinna Nobilis feed on by filtering water.

Marinko Babic

To avoid placing concrete blocks, they used a more environmentally friendly technique to drill the base with an underwater electric drill and install screws to secure the cages.

Like the previous activities of the Eko More Association, the installation of protective cages was carried out in coordination and by order of the competent institutions (Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development - Institute for Environmental Protection, Brijuni National Park, JU Natura Histrica).

Marinko Babic

Summer is ahead of us and a critical period for Tara, Sara, Mara, and Pina, as the endoparasite Haplosporidium pinnae become active at sea temperatures above 13.5 ° C. The noble pen shells recovered nicely during the winter and grew 10-15 mm, which gives a glimmer of hope that they will successfully survive this summer as well.

Anyone who has useful information or observations can help in the search for other surviving Pinna Nobilis, which they can report to their Facebook page "Eco Sea Medulin."

In September 2020, Croatian scientists gathered at a conference aimed at expanding the Natura 2000 network. They sent out a stern warning regarding the future of the noble pen shell in the Mediterranean. The noble pen shell population has been in steep decline, and the scientists warn that, unless measures are initiated, we could lose the species forever. 

For more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

February the 1st, 2021 - One beautiful Medulin lote tree, known as the oldest lady of Medulin (Najstarija Medulinka), is up for European tree of the year for 2021. Here's how you can vote for this beautiful Medulin lote tree.

As previously covered in TCN, this year, the Republic of Croatia will be represented by the winner of the national competition ''Croatian Tree 2020 - The Oldest Medulinka''. It is a 115-year-old lote tree (Celtis australis L.), often referred to as a European nettle tree among other names, which was nominated by the Public Institution for the Management of Protected Areas of Nature of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County as the national coordinator of the competition.

Located on Medulin Square, where it has been following centuries-old customs for many years, the oldest lady of Medulin frequently socialises with both locals and foreign guests. The old Medulin lote tree witnesses man film screenings as well as plays, watches dances during summer concerts and listens to festive singing for the Christmas period, when it is especially dressed up and delights Medulin residents and visitors alike with its beauty.

You will be able to access the selection for the winner of the European Tree 2021 competition by public voting and decide between fourteen leafy candidates of the competition, which attracts an increasing number of nature lovers every year.

Public voting for the two favourite trees, begins online today, Monday the 1st of February, 2021 at 00:00 until February the 28th, 2021 at 00:00. You can vote from one e-mail address only in the period from the 22nd to the 28th of February 2021, the voting results will of course be kept secret.

The winner of the competition will be announced at an online ceremony held in the Belgian capital of Brussels on March the 17th, 2021 as part of the international conference called Planting for the Future.

Voting instructions are below:

- Visit the official website;

- Select two candidates and vote for them;

- Enter your e-mail address in the indicated place to confirm your selection;

- The vote will be respected only after you click on the link you receive to the e-mail address;

- The link through which the page can be accessed in Croatian is: https://treeoftheyear.org/CR.

The European Tree of the Year international competition was created back in 2011 and was inspired by the popular Tree of the Year festival, which has been organised by the Czech Environmental Association for many years over in the Czech Republic.

The competition is organised by the Environmental Partnership Association (EPA) in cooperation with the European Landowners Organisation and the European Commission.

An increasing number of people take part in the competition every year, as evidenced by the number of countries involved. Back in 2017, Croatia joined the candidacy of the Public Institution for the Management of Protected Areas of Nature of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County as the national coordinator of the competition. Thus, in partnership with the Faculty of Forestry, University of Zagreb, Hrvatske sume/Croatian forests and the Croatian Agrometeorological Society, the Public Institution became the organiser of the national competition called Croatian Tree of the Year.

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January 13, 2021 – Given the developed sports and accommodation infrastructure, as well as the organization and sports tradition, does Istria have the potential to become the leading sports tourism destination in the southern part of Europe?

With cities that regularly count the highest numbers of tourist overnight stays each year, Istria has been a top tourist destination for a long time. After a recent endeavor to brand Istria as an attractive region for top IT professionals, Istria is also promoted as a favorable sports tourism destination.

Favorable climate, vicinity to Europe

According to Glas Istre, due to its favorable position, mild climate, and developed sports infrastructure and tradition, Istrian cities on the west coast are often hosting many international clubs and national teams that come to the preparations and camps.

For example, the Croatia national handball team recently made preparations for the 2021 World Handball Championship in the Istrian city of Poreč. Their coach Lino Červar said two years ago that the national team in Poreč feels at home.

Football fields in Medulin / Gat travel agency

Comparative advantages of Istria, such as the proximity of major European cities and favorable climate in the winter months, give it a unique opportunity to compete with other warmer destinations, such as the famous Antalya in Turkey, one of the most attractive sports tourism destinations. However, it is necessary to use those advantages, adequately adjust the infrastructure, and increase and improve the offer.

The corona crisis has certainly benefited Istria, which has logically imposed itself as the best option for sports clubs' semi-seasonal winter preparations. However, once the corona crisis becomes a thing of the past and the borders open, the question is whether Istria can compete with the best.

Well-known Istrian sports destinations - Medulin, Pula, Porec, Rovinj, and Umag

Football fields near the Belvedere Hotel in Medulin traditionally attract football clubs. All six football fields are 100 to a maximum of 500 meters apart. About 200 clubs from all over Europe pass through Medulin annually, and this year it was chosen by the football clubs Lokomotiva, Šibenik, Međimurje, Slaven Belupo, Gorica, and domestic Istria 1961.

Apart from Medulin, sports tourism also thrives in the four largest Istrian cities – Pula, Poreč, Rovinj, and Umag, which also generate the largest tourist traffic. The famous Poreč sports hall Žatika, one of six halls in the city, was built for the 2009 World Handball Championship in Croatia, and as a result of many years of investment in sports, a football camp will soon be built in Poreč.

Currently, football clubs Rijeka, Slovačko from the Czech Republic, Budafoki MTE from Hungary, and Sturm Graz from Austria are preparing in Umag. The City of Umag says that they have been continuously working on raising the quality of football fields for years, especially in the Stella Maris sports center.

Tennis center Stella Maris in Umag / Copyright Romulić and Stojčić

Umag is already recognized as a base for the winter preparations of many European first leaguers. The current situation with the coronavirus has only further increased the number of inquiries from foreign football clubs. By the end of February, numerous first-league and second-league clubs are expected to spend their winter preparations in Umag, culminating in a series of traditional Umag Trophy youth football tournaments, for which Juventus and Bayern Münich have already confirmed the arrival.

"We have recognized all the comparative advantages of Istria. Ten years ago, we decided to develop this type of tourism, together with the Umag Tourist Board and the hotel company Plava Laguna. We notice that the potential is much greater than what we can currently satisfy with the existing infrastructure, so the sports center and additional fields are also planned," they say from the City of Umag.

Marko Kuže: Rovinj is Dinamo's winter base

Dinamo and Osijek football clubs are currently preparing in Rovinj. It seems that the corona crisis, in this case, was not crucial given that the clubs of the first Croatian football league, as well as the Croatian national football team, chose Rovinj in previous years.

Rovinj / Copyright Romulić and Stojčić

When asked whether Rovinj can compete specifically with Turkey, the City reminds that Dinamo players declared themselves on this issue last year. They said that, given the quality of the terrain and accommodation, Rovinj is no weaker than Turkey, where they had the opportunity to make preparations before. Last year, the conditions offered by Rovinj were praised by the then Dinamo coach Nenad Bjelica, who returned here this year to prepare with the Football club Osijek.

Marko Kuže, technical director of Dinamo, says that in Rovinj, the conditions for preparations are excellent, from accommodation to the training ground.

"On behalf of the club, staff, and players, I must express my satisfaction with the hospitality. We are always pleasantly welcomed here, and this is very important in choosing a location for such a serious work process as preparations. Considering that Rovinj is already Dinamo's winter base, we have a good experience this year. There was no need to look for a location for preparations outside of Croatia because we have everything here. We see that other teams have preparations in Istria, which is also very good for domestic tourism," says Kuže.

ZAGREB, December 4, 2020 - In Croatia there are big differences between the richest and poorest municipalities, with Medulin's revenue in the past two years amounting to the total revenue of the 25 poorest municipalities, while Zagreb's revenue exceeds the combined income of 120 cities, according to the Institute of Public Finance.

A newsletter on the budgets of municipalities, cities and counties in 2018 and 2019 shows that the average revenue in 2019 was HRK 225 million for counties, HRK 150 million for cities including Zagreb and HRK 93 million for those excluding Zagreb, and HRK 13 million for municipalities.

In 2019, 45% of local units ran a budget surplus (11 counties, 61 cities, 185 municipalities), down from 60% in 2018 (12 counties, 81 cities, 249 municipalities).

In 2019, the biggest surpluses were recorded by Varazdin County (HRK 24.4m), the City of Rijeka (HRK 69.6m) and Baska Voda Municipality (HRK 9.3m), while the biggest deficits were recorded by Virovitica-Podravina County (HRK 43.5m), the City of Zagreb (HRK 453.6 million) and Medulin Municipality (HRK 51.9m).

However, the number of municipalities and cities with higher per capita revenue increased, the bulk generating between HRK 3,000 and 6,000 in 2018 and 2019. The authors of the newsletter attribute this to the new fiscal equalisation system in force as of 2018.

In 2019, less than 11% of municipalities, only three cities (Duga Resa, Oroslavje, Donja Stubica) and every county generated less than HRK 3,000 in per capita revenue. In 2019, 54 cities or municipalities had a higher per capita revenue than the City of Zagreb (HRK 9.427).

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

November 22, 2020 - Pula and Medulin have launched an offseason campaign to tempt travelers in the winter months. 

Goran Rihelj of HRTurizam writes that the Adriatic's inviting weather nearly 10 months out of the year should be enough incentive to extend the tourist season. Arena Hospitality Group made the first move and opened its campsites, the Arena Stoja camp and the Arena Grand Kažela camp, which are now open all year round, next to the already open Park Plaza Histria hotel in Pula.

But is decent weather enough? The real answer, says Rihelj, is quality content and a complete tourist product.

We must first be aware of two facts: That the motive for arrivals is the destination, not accommodation, and the second is that out of season, the motive for arrivals is not the sun and the sea, or swimming. So, the logical sequence is to ask is: Why should someone come to our destination out of season, if there is no swimming? What will they do? Are all facilities open after October 1?

According to the tourist lifestyle portal Turističke priče (Tourist Stories), the destinations Pula and Medulin have joined forces through the campaign "Warm Winter in Pula and Medulin".

The campaign presents the destination of the city of Pula and Medulin Riviera with all its accommodation facilities, but also natural and cultural riches, as ideal and safe places to spend a winter vacation.

Sports and recreation are ideal in this area due to the climate, but also sports infrastructure: 6 FIFA football fields in Medulin, 5,900-square-meter Pula city pool, two Pula stadiums with athletic tracks, tennis courts, trim tracks, and other sports facilities, announces the campaign, as well as various natural and cultural riches, bicycle and hiking trails and the unavoidable gastronomic offer.

However, it is necessary to complete the entire tourist, because the motive for coming is not accommodation. Thus, through a digital platform, a range of experiences and answers to the question "what can we do here?", segmented by interests, will be listed. It is also great to combine various events, congresses, and other events, but this is currently not possible due to the coronavirus epidemic. 

Rihelj adds that the support of the city through various subsidies is needed and that as many entrepreneurs as possible should get involved in the action, to have as many different activities in the destination as possible. Since everyone makes up the destination, and the synergy of all partners is crucial.

We should certainly praise the beginning of the campaign because the narrative and positioning that the destination is "alive" and still attractive for tourists in the winter months is extremely important.

Did you know that southern Istria has more than 2,300 hours of sunshine a year? 

Bravo to Pula and Medulin!

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November 16, 2020 – Sheltering a public square in the pretty Istrian village where she resides, The Oldest Lady in Medulin is Croatia Tree of the Year 2020 and will represent the country in the European Tree of the Year competition 2021

Najstarija Medulinka (the oldest lady in Medulin) is the winner of the Croatia Tree of the Year competition. She beat seven other contenders in a public vote set up by the competition's organisers, the Public Institution for the Management of Protected Areas of Nature of Dubrovnik-Neretva County. The Oldest Lady in Medulin will now represent Croatia in the European Tree of the Year competition 2021.

The Oldest Lady in Medulin © Sonja Barbara Bader

The Oldest Lady in Medulin can be found in centrally in her village, which lies at the south of the Istrian peninsula. She shelters a public square in the village of Medulin and much merriment has previously taken place at gatherings beneath her branches. In English, this type of tree is sometimes called European nettle tree, Mediterranean hackberry, lote tree, or honeyberry.

The Oldest Lady in Medulin won Croatian Tree of the Year 2020 with 9373 votes. The tree is 115 years old. This species, Celtis australis, is widespread in Mediterranean countries and can grow up to 25 metres in height. It has been said these trees can live up to 400 years. Their branches are pliable when young and so, in the past, the tree has been used to make walking sticks and the handles of some tools. It's small fruits and its leaves are sometimes still used in folk medicine.

As many as 23,238 people this year voted in the Croatia Tree of the Year competition. The tree which came in second place was the London Planetree of Mursko Središće, Međimurje County with 5874 votes, and in third place was Baka Maslina (Grandmother's olive tree) from Kaštel Štafilić in Split-Dalmatia County with 5068 votes.

Voting for European Tree of the Year will open on 1st February 2021 and people will be able to choose a favourite until 28 February 2021, when voting closes. The winner will be announced in Brussels on 21 March 2021 on World Forest Day. Croatia first participated in the European Tree of the Year competition in 2018 and last year narrowly missed winning the competition. The country took second place for its 2020 entry, the 242-year-old Ginkgo biloba tree which stands in front of Castle Janković in Daruvar.

The 242-year-old Ginkgo biloba tree which stands in front of Castle Janković in Daruvar, Croatia Tree of the Year 2019 © JU-Priroda-BBŽ

As Adriano Milovan/Novac writes on the 26th of March, 2019, the Croatian municipalities with the largest number of entrepreneurs in the country are Viškovo, Medulin and Matulji, according to FINA's new data on the matter.

According to this new data, 584 entrepreneurs had their headquarters registered in the municipality of Viškovo near Rijeka back in 2017. Following is the municipality of Medulin in Istria, with 508 entrepreneurs having their headquarters located in this area, and the municipality of Matulji near Opatija, with 501 entrepreneurs having their headquarters there.

On the other hand, the smallest number of entrepreneurs (only one) were found in the municipality of Saborsko in Karlovac County. Of 428 Croatian municipalities taken into account according to the number of entrepreneurs based in their territory, Ervenik in Šibenik-Knin County had only two registered entrepreneurs, and Zadvarje in Split-Dalmatia County had a mere three.

In all Croatian municipalities in 2017, a total of 19,821 entrepreneurs had their headquarters in one area or another of the country. They employed a total of 119,787 workers, according to FINA's information. Although differences in the number of registered entrepreneurs among Croatian municipalities are huge and reflect major differences in the degree of development among them.

Only 39 Croatian municipalities had 100 and more entrepreneurs in 2017, according to Fina's data. Between 51 and 99 entrepreneurs could be found across 79 municipalities, and most of the municipalities, as many as 258 of them, boasted between 11 and 50 entrepreneurs. 36 municipalities had between six and 10 entrepreneurs, while 13 municipalities had four or five entrepreneurs. Only three municipalities, Fina's data shows, had just one to three entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs based in municipalities in 2017 realised revenues amounting to 72.8 billion kuna, representing significant growth of 9.7 percent. The expenditures of these companies back in 2017 rose by 10.2 percent. The consolidated net profit of these companies in 2017 stood at 2.8 billion kuna.

Back in 2017, these Croatian companies also achieved great growth in employment. Namely, with respect to the previous business year, employment grew by 7.4 percent, which is more than employment growth in urban businesses, which stood at 5.6 percent in the same period.

The largest number of employees, up to 4,353 in 2017, were employed by companies with their headquarters based in Trnovec Bartolovečki in Varaždin County. Following is the municipality of Stupnik in Zagreb County, with 3,855 employees, and Viškovo, with 2,367 employees in companies registered in the area of ​​that municipality.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business page for much more.

Click here for the original article by Adriano Milovan for Novac/Jutarnji