August 5, 2020 - 222 defenders were killed in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County during the Croatian War of Independence. 222 torches are traditionally burned in their honor on Krk Bridge to commemorate Operation Storm.

Operation Storm, a strategic victory in which the Croatian Army liberated Croatia, began on this day in 1995. It is considered the most important military offensive of the Croatian War of Independence. 

Index.hr reports that during the Croatian War of Independence, from 1991 to 1995, 222 defenders were killed in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, and 222 torches are burned in their honor on the Krk Bridge. The traditional torchlight procession has been organized since 2017 by the NK Rijeka fan group 'Armada', the 'Vavik Vjerna Kirija' fan association from Crikvenica and members of the 'Blue and White Island' fan association from the island of Krk.

Take a look at the scenes from the Krk Bridge below.

"There is no surrender! Honoring the dead does not allow a delay, not for anything, let alone for the rain!" pointed out the Armada fan group, answering the question if the adverse weather on Tuesday would disrupt the torchlight procession on the Krk Bridge, by which fans pay tribute to the fallen veterans from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County that gave their lives for an independent Croatia.

"On this day in 1995, the victorious Storm started. How would it be if the operation was postponed because very high temperatures were announced, if they delayed the action for a more pleasant situation? We cannot retreat, there will be 222 torches for the heroes from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County whose lives were lost for our freedom in the Homeland War.

Several inquiries arrived in the last few hours about whether the traditional Armada torchlight procession would take place. The reason for concern can be seen with the naked eye, just by looking out the window and the announcement of more torrential rain over Rijeka, including in the area of Kraljevica during the torchlight procession. Delaying this is out of the question and there is no surrender. Get dressed and go to Kraljevica, Oštar, Voz, Črinjševa," said the members of the Armada before the torchlight procession.

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August 3, 2020 - In the first match of the playoffs for the Croatian First League, Istra 1961, as a guest at Kantrida stadium, defeated Orijent 3-0 (1-0) and took a big step towards remaining in the company of Croatia's football best.

The first two goals in the match were scored by Grzan, the first in the 8th minute from a penalty kick, the second in the 64th minute, and Maganjic secured the final result in the third minute of the referee's added time.

Istra gained the advantage very early after Smolcic clumsily and unnecessarily knocked down Guzina in the penalty area. Grzan made sure the ball went nowhere but the net for the 1-0 lead.

Already in the 22nd minute, Orijent began losing hope as Ivancevic was sent off with a red card due to a dangerous play. Orijent was forced to play with a man down for the rest of the match.

The second goal of the match was scored by Grzan in the 64th minute, when in the race for a deep ball, Grzan was quicker than the Orijent goalkeeper Berkovic, found his way around him and hit the empty net diagonally.

At the very end of the match, the questionable referee Jovic showed two more red cards. First, after a rough foul, he only showed Istra 1961 player Ivancic a yellow card. After Orijent player Gerc pointed out that it was a red card foul, Jovic first showed Gerc a yellow card for objecting, and as it was his second yellow card, he was excluded from the game. Jovic then consulted VAR, and after watching a recording of Ivancic's offense, he excluded him as well.

At the very end of the match, Maganjic locked in Istra's final and convincing 3-0 lead.

The return match will be played in Pula on Wednesday.

Source: HRT

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August 2, 2020 - Rijeka celebrated the Croatian Cup on Saturday, defeating Lokomotiva 1:0 in the final in Sibenik.

Tibor Halilovic scored the winning goal in the 76th minute. This is Rijeka's sixth cup title, while Lokomotiva is still without a trophy, suffering two defeats in the final.

Rijeka celebrated in a hard game with a goal by Halilovic, although Lokomotiva had better chances throughout the match. However, the club that has won the cup three times in the last four years proved once again they know how to seal the deal in crucial moments. 

In a very careful first half, almost without a single chance, Lokomotiva almost reached the goal in the 42nd minute, but Tolic's shot was saved by goalkeeper Pandur.

In the second half, much better football was played, and already in the 52nd minute, Kastrati hit the post. In the 63rd minute, after Escoval's foul on Kastrati, referee Pejin awarded a penalty kick, but after the intervention of the VAR, Pejin changed his mind and awarded only a free-kick.

In the 76th minute, Rijeka scored from the first real chance. After a long action in which Pavicic found Tibor Halilovic, he easily hit the net from ten meters out.

Eight minutes before the end of the match, Grbic defended a dangerous header by Colak, and in the 93rd minute, Lokomotiva's Jakic hit the crossbar in the last chance to even the result. 

Drago Sopta / HNS

"Rijeka is an institution, the club's management knows what it wants, the players and coaches have support, the city loves the club, we have great fans and when you have such a symbiosis, then something happens. Today we succeeded, the trophy is here," said the coach of Rijeka Simon Rozman in an interview for HRT after the final celebration.

"The week behind us is very emotional, we were preparing, we were only interested in the trophy. We also had a bit of sports luck, but the most important thing is that the trophy is there. It was hard, especially at the start, there were a lot of ups and downs, and we got up at the right time. I said not everything is ideal, but the trophy is there, and third place in the championship. In the end, I am very tired, the difficult season is behind us," added the Rijeka strategist.

Lokomotiva had a great season, but after second place in the championship, they failed to win the first trophy in club history.

"Congratulations to Rijeka on the trophy, but also to my team on a very good game. I think we did everything we could and that we looked good from the tactical side, but the ball didn't go into the goal today. It’s football and it needs to be accepted. I think we had extraordinary opportunities in the first half, in the second as well, but football is played for goals, Rijeka scored one more and everything is clean and clear. Congratulations to Rijeka," said Lokomotiva coach Goran Tomic.

Source: HRT

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July 29, 2020 - A first in the world of French fries as Croatian company Surf'n'Fries debuts its new French Fry Vending Machine at Monty's Dog Beach in Crikvenica

A first in the world of French fries today as Croatian company Surf'n'Fries debuted the pilot of their new French Fry Vending Machine at Monty's Dog Beach in Crikvenica. Now hunger needn't call a halt to the good time your dog and kids are having by the sea; you can get fresh, hot French fries in 35 seconds.

“We started working on it three years ago,” says Andrija Čolak, whose Surf'n'Fries fast food outlet has franchises in four continents. “Automation is key to the food industry, so we thought the ultimate step would be to go to vending machines. So, we collaborated with a Croatian company called Integra and managed to make this pilot.”

“We chose this beach because it's close to our home and we can easily check on it,” says Čolak, who also runs a consultancy firm in Rijeka, the city where he co-founded the well known Kisha umbrella brand. “Also because this beach is very famous and it has a beach bar for dogs. It's a popular place. We adjusted the design and graphics of the machine so it would fit in alongside the beach bar.”

As this first machine is the pilot, it's options are limited to salt and ketchup. But Andrija's vision extends much further. “In the future we plan to add more sauces and probably chicken nuggets as well,” he told TCN from the sun-soaked first day in Crikvenica. “We'll work at this location until the end of the season. After that, the plan is to test it at the main bus station in Zagreb. It has a lot of potential; shopping malls, airports, in particular venues which operate 24 hours.”

“Vending machines are having a bit of a renaissance because you can now connect them to the internet,” reckons Andrija. “That has all sorts of implications for stock ordering and the customer experience. You could use facial recognition to recognise returning customers, ask them if they want the same again or even offer rewards.”

TCN isn't quite sure it wants recognising as a regular indulger in French fries, but if we're in Crikvenica this summer you can count on us sneaking a sample of Surf'n'Fries from the French Fry Vending Machine on Monty's Dog Beach.

July 29, 2020 - Just 20 days after the end of the 2019/20 season, the new Croatian First League (HNL) season will begin.

On Wednesday, in the presence of all clubs and the commissioner for the competition Josip Brezni, the draw of the competing pairs of the Croatian First League for the 2020/21 season was held, which determined the schedule of matches in the 30th Croatian Championship, which will begin on Friday, August 14.

The draw determined that the champion Dinamo and runner-up Lokomotiva will meet in the 1st round, while the other pairs of the 1st round are Osijek - Slaven Belupo, Hajduk - Istra 1961 / Orijent, Rijeka - Sibenik and Varazdin - Gorica.

The Championship will end on May 15, 2021, when Slaven Belupo - Varazdin, Rijeka - Gorica, Dinamo - Sibenik, Hajduk - Lokomotiva and Osijek - Istra 1961 / Orient will meet.

The biggest derby is scheduled for the 4th round, on September 12, when Hajduk welcomes Dinamo. The Adriatic derby between Hajduk and Rijeka is scheduled for the 5th round at Rujevica. One round later, Rijeka travels to Dinamo as guests.

The potential Rijeka city derby, if the Orient qualifies for the First League, will be played in the 3rd round. Osijek is facing a demanding schedule at the start, playing in the 2nd round against Hajduk, in the 3rd against Dinamo, and the 4th against Rijeka.

The last Championship, which was suspended for almost three months due to the coronavirus pandemic, ended only on July 25, and the Cup final between Rijeka and Lokomotiva is set for August 1 in Sibenik. The qualification playoff for the Croatian First League between Orient and Istra 1961 is still to be played. The first match will be played in Rijeka on August 2, and the return match will be in Pula on August 5.

You can read more about the Croatian First League here.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

July 27, 2020 - The 36th round of the Croatian First League was held on July 24 and 25, 2020. The final round of the 2019/20 season secured Dinamo, Lokomotiva, and Rijeka's place in the top 3, while Osijek and Hajduk finished 4th and 5th. 

Dinamo v. Varazdin (2:0)

Dinamo and Varazdin opened the 36th round on Friday, July 24, 2020, at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb. 

Mayer scored in the 9th minute for the 1:0 Dinamo lead, and Cuze increased the lead to 2:0 in the 42nd minute for the final result. 

Dinamo finished the season in first place with 80 points, while Varazdin finished in 8th with 36.

Gorica v. Slaven Belupo (0:0)

Gorica and Belupo met on Friday, July 24, 2020, in Velika Gorica.

The game went without goals. 

Gorica finished the season in 6th place with 49 points, while Belupo finished in 7th with 39. 

Inter Zapresic v. Hajduk (1:4)

Inter and Hajduk met on Saturday, July 25, 2020, in Zagreb. 

While the first half went without goals, all the excitement was left for the second. Hajduk's Vuskovic received a double yellow in the 50th minute, forcing Hajduk to play with a man down for the remainder fo the game. Hajduk's Caktas scored seven minutes later for 0:1.

And own goal increased Hajduk's lead to 0:2 in the 63rd minute, and an Inter red card in the 72nd minute evened the playing field. Caktas scored again in the 75th minute for 0:3, Jradi scored in the first minute of added time for 0:4, and Adric got one goal in for Inter in the 93rd for 1:4. 

Inter finished the season in the last place with 17 points and will be relegated from the Croatian First League, while Hajduk finished in 5th with 60 points. 

Rijeka v. Istra. 1961 (4:2)

Rijeka and Istra met on Saturday, July 25, 2020, at Rujevica Stadium. 

Three goals from Colak gave Rijeka a 3:0 lead at the half. Yet another goal from Colak made it 4:0 for Rijeka in the 54th minute. Guzina decreased Rijeka's lead in the 60th minute to 4:1, while a Guzina penalty ended the game 4:2.

Rijeka finished the season in 3rd place with 64 points, while Istra finished in 9th with 25. 

Osijek v. Lokomotiva (1:2)

Osijek and Lokomotiva closed out the 36th round and the 2019/20 season in the battle for second place on Saturday, July 25, 2020, at City Garden Stadium. 

While the first half went without goals, Jakic scored for Lokomotiva in the 53rd minute for 0:1, and Osjiek's Maric equalized for 1:1 five minutes later. An own goal ultimately gave Lokomotiva the 1:2 win in the 88th minute.

Osijek finished the season in 4th place with 62 points, while Lokomotiva finished in 2nd with 65. 

All games in the final round were played without the presence of fans. 

You can see the full HNL table here.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

July 20, 2020 - The penultimate 35th round of the Croatian First League was held from July 17 to 19, 2020. This round featured the Adriatic Derby between Hajduk and Rijeka, which was the final game played at Poljud this season. 

Slaven Belupo v. Inter Zapresic (3:1)

Belupo and Inter opened the 35th round on Friday, July 17, 2020, in Koprivnica.

Adric scored the first goal of the match in the 13th minute for the Inter lead. Bacelic-Grgic equalized in the 42nd for 1:1 at the half. 

Etoundi increased Belupo's lead in the 49th minute for 2:1, and a Krstanovic penalty made it 3:1 three minutes later.

Slaven Belupo is currently in 7th place with 38 points, while Inter is in the last place with 17. 

Varazdin v. Osijek (1:0)

Varazdin and Osijek met in Varazdin on Saturday, July 18, 2020. 

A Drozdek goal in the 39th minute gave Varazdin the win. 

Varazdin is currently in 8th place with 36 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 62. 

Istra 1961 v. Dinamo Zagreb (0:0) 

Istra and Dinamo met in Pula on July 18, 2020. 

The game went without goals. 

Istra is currently in 9th place with 25 points, while Dinamo already clinched the titled in first place with 77. 

Lokomotiva v. Gorica (1:1)

Lokomotiva and Gorica met in Zagreb on Sunday, July 19, 2020. 

Budimir scored for Lokomotiva in the 10th minute for the early lead. Twenty minutes later, a Lokomotiva goal was called back by VAR. 

Mudrinski equalized for Gorica in the 61st minute for a final score of 1:1. 

Lokomotiva is currently in 3rd place with 62 points, while Gorica is in 6th with 48. 

Hajduk v. Rijeka (2:3)

Hajduk and Rijeka closed out the 35th round on Sunday, July 19, 2020, at Poljud in Split. 

Rijeka's Colak was the first to score with a goal in the 19th minute. Eduok equalized in the 39th for 1:1. Colak scored again during the added time for 1:2 Rijeka at the half. 

A Caktas penalty in the 69th minute made it 2:2, though a header from Galovic in the third minute of added time (90+3') gave Rijeka the 2:3 win. 

Hajduk is currently in 5th place with 57 points, while Rijeka is in 4th with 61. 

You can see the full HNL table here. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

July 19, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Zagreb and Rijeka airports. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Emirates, a renowned Dubai-based airline, has canceled all flights on the Dubai-Zagreb route for this year.

Before the outbreak of the pandemic, Emirates planned to launch its seasonal route from Dubai to Zagreb with the first day of the summer flight schedule, at the end of March this year. For obvious reasons, this did not happen, and the start of the line was delayed several times. The last plan was to launch the line in September this year.

As this is a seasonal line (it operates only in the summer flight schedule, until the end of October), it was to be assumed that Emirates will not come to Zagreb this year, which has now been confirmed.

Namely, the company canceled all flights on the said route, withdrew sales on all dates, and currently offers flights from Zagreb only in the summer flight schedule in 2021.

Emirates connected Zagreb with Dubai daily, using a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, which was also the largest wide-body passenger aircraft at Zagreb Airport. With the complete withdrawal of Emirates from this line for this year, Zagreb was left without wide-body aircraft. Recall that Korean Air, Air Canada Rouge and Air Transat also canceled flights to Zagreb and used wide-body aircraft to operate them.

In the winter flight schedule on the Dubai - Zagreb line, FlyDubai should return with a B737-800 aircraft, but this will depend on epidemiological measures and travel restrictions.

Emirates canceling this line is another significant blow to Zagreb Airport traffic. 

Croatian Aviation also announced that Croatia Airlines will still launch a direct line between Munich and Rijeka, according to Rijeka Airport. 

Although Croatia Airlines previously closed sales on this route and has not operated on it since the beginning of the pandemic, the company has now released tickets on the direct route between Rijeka and Munich.

The Munich - Rijeka line will operate twice a week, every Thursday and Sunday, on a DashQ400 aircraft, from August 6 to September 27 this year.

This is certainly good news for Rijeka Airport, but it is a smaller number of weekly flights (previously operated on Tuesdays), and given that the route has been announced until the end of September, there is a possibility that it will not operate in the winter schedule, which has been the case so far.

As before, the aircraft will first operate the Split - Munich flight, then Munich - Rijeka - Munich, and then the return flight Munich - Split. The flight schedule remained the same, with the morning departure from Munich to Rijeka, while the return flight to Munich was scheduled shortly after noon from Rijeka Airport.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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ZAGREB, July 18, 2020 - Residents of Marcelji and communities close to the Mariscina waste management centre, located north-east of Rijeka, gathered outside the entrance to the facility to protest against the stench and pollution that make their lives difficult.

One of the protest organisers, Davorka Simcic, said that the people of the surrounding communities had been enduring the stench from Mariscina for years and that it was particularly intense in summer.

"Our patience is running thin," Simcic said, adding that workers at the waste management centre were exposed to poisoning just as much as local residents.

She said that this time they had invited politicians to their protest to fight for the rights of the local population. "We want them to raise their voice for us in the Croatian parliament. We want parliament to become a frontline in the fight against Mariscina," Simcic said.

The protesters called upon the environment minister to shut down the Mariscina waste management centre as soon as possible. 

July 17, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates from Split, Dubrovnik, Pula, Zadar, and Rijeka. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Transavia, a low-cost airline with subsidiaries in France and the Netherlands, has made some changes to its flight schedule to destinations in Croatia.

At the end of June and the beginning of July, the company launched lines to Croatia, as many as 8 of them, and continues to operate on them through August.

The Paris Orly - Split route operates 3 times a week, but the company previously planned to increase it to as many as 6 weekly flights. This will not happen due to low demand. From August 13, the number of weekly flights will be reduced to 2.

The Rotterdam - Split line runs 5 times a week, and the same number of weekly flights is announced in August (every day except Monday and Wednesday).

The Nantes - Dubrovnik line continues to operate twice a week, as was announced earlier.

The Paris Orly - Dubrovnik line operates 3 times a week, and the company planned one more flight a week through August, but will keep the same number of operations (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays).

The Rotterdam - Dubrovnik line continues to operate according to plan and through August, 2 times a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays).

The Rotterdam - Zadar line will hold three weekly flights in August (Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays).

The Rotterdam - Pula line will increase the number of weekly flights, from 3 to as many as 5, every day except Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout August.

The Eindhoven - Rijeka line will continue to operate 3 times a week in August (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays), which is one flight less per week compared to the 2019 season.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that the Slovak airline, Air Explore, announced its first scheduled flight to Croatia.

So far, the company has operated to Croatia on charter lines, mostly in the summer months, but will now launch the first regular line between Bratislava and Split.

The Bratislava - Split line will be in operation from Sunday, July 19, twice a week until the end of September this year. The line will operate twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays in the afternoon on B737-800 aircraft.

This is the first, completely new route introduced by the airline since the coronavirus pandemic.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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