July 29, 2021 - Čilić and Dodig reached the finals of the Olympic Games in doubles with a victory against the New Zealand pair Daniell and Venus (6-2, 6-2) and thus secured an Olympic tennis medal for Croatia!

The joys in the Tokyo Olympics do not stop coming for Croatia, and especially in the doubles category in tennis, where until yesterday it was known that they had at least secured a bronze medal by having the couple Čilić and Dodig, and recent Wimbledon champions Mektić and Pavić, both in the semi-finals. But today Marin Čilić and Ivan Dodig beat their New Zealand rivals (6-2, 6.2) and qualified for the final, now securing a silver medal for Croatia.

Later, Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić will play with the Americans Austin Krajicek and Tennys Sandgren, and in the event of the victory of Mektić and Pavić, Croatia would win another medal in Tokyo, and for the first time, we would watch the Croatian final at the Olympic Games, reports Index.hr.

Čilić and Dodig easily celebrated in the semifinals against the New Zealanders. It was uncertain only up to 2: 2 in the first set. After that, the Croatian tennis players made a series of eight games, rushed to 6: 2, 4: 0, and calmly kept the advantage for a huge celebration.

To reach this stage, Čilić and Dodig had to beat the Japanese Daniel and Nishioka (6-2, 6-4) in the first round. In the second round they beat the Americans Ram and Tiafoe (6-3, 7-5), and yesterday they beat the British Murray and Salisbury (4-6, 7-6, 10-7) for the quarterfinals.

Until the Games in Tokyo, Čilić and Dodig played 22 doubles matches and celebrated in 12 of them, and they had the best form in 2016 when they recorded all doubles victories in the Davis Cup, but despite that, Croatia lost the Davis Cup final that year to Argentina.

In the finals, they could expect Mektić and Pavić, the best tennis pair of today, which has 51 victories and only five defeats this year. It should be remembered that Metkić and Pavić arrived in Tokyo as the recent champions of the Wimbledon doubles tournament this month.

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July 29,  2021 - Damir Martin has secured a spot in the Olympic single sculls rowing final in Tokyo! 

After winning the silver in single sculls from Rio de Janeiro in 2016, Croatian rower Damir Martin advanced to the final of the Olympic Games in Tokyo!

Martin took second place in his semifinal group behind the excellent Norwegian Kjetil Borch, and ahead of Lithuanian Mindaugas Grškonis.

Already after about 200 meters, Martin took second place. In the first pass he was 94 hundredths behind Borch, in the middle of the race he was 97 hundredths behind, and 500 meters before the finish 1.28 seconds. In the end, Borch was up 2.35 seconds. Martin's placement among the top six was never in question at any point.

With this success, Martin completed a great day for Croatia rowing in Tokyo. Earlier on Thursday, brothers Valent and Martin Sinković became Olympic champions in coxless pairs!

This is the third Olympic medal for the Sinković brothers in the third different discipline. In 2012, they won silver in the quadruple sculls in London, when Martin was also in the boat with them, and in 2016 in London, they won gold in the double sculls. 

Martin, Borch, and Grishkonis in the A final, which is scheduled on Friday at 2:45 am Croatian time, are joined by Greek rower Stefanos Ntoukousis, who achieved the best time in the semifinals, Dane Sverri Nielsen, and Russian Alexander Vyazovkin, while the big favorite German Oliver Zeidler was left without the final as he entered the finish line fourth.

"I am satisfied with my placement in the finals, but certainly not with rowing. I struggled with maintaining direction, the wind carried me to the buoys, and I dragged four or five. If it weren't for that, I would have managed to get the Norwegian rower with a minimum delay. I'm ready like a dragon. I've paddled a race like this, even though I was dragging buoys behind me. I am really ready," said Martin. 

Source: HRT

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July 29, 2021 - Croatia tops Montenegro in Game 3 of the Olympic Games in Toyko (13:8)!

Croatia water polo met Montenegro in the third round match of the Olympic Games in Tokyo on Thursday. 

Ivica Tucak's side started the competition with a huge victory against Kazakhstan but surprisingly lost to Australia in game two. Croatia must now look for points against tougher opponents - Montenegro is followed by tough matches against Serbia and Spain.

1st Quarter

Miloš scored Croatia's first goal to equalize with 5:39 left on the clock. The next 3 minutes saw neither team score, with counter fouls committed on both sides. Lončar finally hit the post with just over 2 minutes to go, but the game remained 1:1. Garcia missed a good chance with less than a minute left. The 1st quarter ended at 1:1. 

2nd Quarter

Croatia and Montenegro both missed goals in their opening attacks but Bukić finally put Croatia in the lead for 2:1 with 6:42 to go. A Fatović rocket made it +2 for Croatia with 6 minutes left! Another incredible reaction followed as Bušlje tapped in his first goal for the 4:1 lead.

Fatović was on fire and scored his second goal for 2:5 with 3:44 to go. Fatović scored again for 6:3 with less than 2 minutes on the clock. 

Obradović made it 7:4 with an extra-man goal with less than a minute in the 2nd. The 2nd quarter finished 7:5 for Croatia. 

3rd Quarter

Garcia opened the 3rd quarter with a goal for 8:5 and scored another rocket for 9:6 with less than three minutes to go! Luka Lončar scored his first goal of the match for 10:7 with less than 2 minutes on the clock. Luka Bukić made it 11:8 to end the 3rd quarter. 

4th Quarter

Vukičević scored for 12:8 Croatia to open the final quarter, and scored again for 13:8 with just over 2 minutes to go in the game! Bijač was brilliant in goal to keep Croatia in the lead with less than a minute on the clock. The game ended 13:8 for Croatia! 

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July 29, 2021 - The Sinković brothers have done it again - they have won the rowing Olympic gold medal in Tokyo!

The celebrated Valent and Martin Sinković have won the Olympic gold in the coxless pairs discipline at the Olympic Games in Tokyo!

The Sinković brothers started strongly in their style from the start and immediately took the lead. After 500 meters, they had a 1.16-second advantage over Denmark and more than two seconds over the other four crews. In the middle of the race, the Sinković brothers were already a boat's length in front of the first runners-up, Romania, and Denmark, and held that advantage until the last 200 meters.

In the very end, the excellent Romania team of Marius Cozmiuc and Ciprian Tudosa managed to get closer, but the Sinković brothers attacked and passed the finish line with a 1.29-second advantage. The bronze was won by Denmark's Frederic Vystavel and Joachim Sutton.

This is the third Olympic medal for the Sinković brothers in the third different discipline, after the silver in the quadruple sculls from London 2012 and the gold in the doubles sculls from Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

The Sinković brothers reached a new triumph with convincing victories in all three of their appearances in Tokyo, starting on Saturday in the qualifiers, continuing on Wednesday in the semifinals, and finishing the job on Thursday in the finals.

This is the second gold for Croatia in Tokyo, three days after taekwondo fighter Matea Jelić was the best in the category up to 67 kilograms.

"I don't know what to say smartly, we said everything on the track. The race is exactly as we imagined. We got Romania every time they tried to catch up with us," said Martin Sinković.

Valent added:

"Romania tested us to the limit. They set off before we thought of an attack, at 1000 meters already, we let them in a bit, and then at 750, we hit all the way so they didn’t feel blood. The last 200 we did the work, we said we wouldn’t breathe."

"We wanted to cross the finish line first and we achieved that. We made history, we made history with the world’s first gold, and now we’re still up," said Martin.

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July 28, 2021 - Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić thus join Marin Čilić and Ivan Dodig in the Olympic doubles semifinals!

Croatia's Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić won a spot in the semifinals of the Olympic Games in Tokyo with a victory against Japan's Nishikori and McLachlan 6:3, 6:3.

"It feels good, we played a really good match. Honestly, I expected it to be harder. Nishikori is a great player in singles and McLachlan great in doubles. It was a lot harder for us the day before yesterday against the Italians. Today we served well and saved some key break points that broke the match. We are overjoyed and look forward to the semi-finals," Pavić began in a statement after the match.

Their next opponents are team USA's Tennys Sandgren and Austin Krajicek, who beat Germany's Struff and Zverev 6:3, 7:6 in the quarterfinals.

"I have already lost to the Americans. It will be difficult, it is the semifinals, so we can't expect anything else," Mektić commented briefly.

Pavić is pleased that they have become accustomed to the conditions in Tokyo.

"It's playing more and more, the ball is more on the court, it's not all over with service and returns. We've gotten used to the conditions and I hope we continue to play like this."

"There is no fatigue, the stakes are too high to think about fatigue," Mektić added.

Along with Pavić and Mektić, Marin Čilić and Ivan Dodig also reached the semifinals. 

"The Croatian public and journalists write everything, it could be read that the way to gold is open for us, that in principle no one plays at the Olympics except us, which is a total absurdity. We can see it in the results and difficult matches between us and Čilić and Dodig; I don't know if people are aware of what this result is for us and for them. We were the only ones to have two representatives in the quarterfinals and now in the semifinals. It's fascinating. We all want a Croatian final and that would be a wonderful story, but we have another difficult match," said Pavić, and Mektić agreed:

"We are not modest, but realistic. Doubles are a game where several balls decide. The scoring system is very open and equalizes things. As phenomenal as our form and results are, we have won a lot of matches on just one or two balls. We are aware that we have to play our best tennis to win."

Croatia has thus confirmed at least one medal in tennis doubles!

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July 28, 2021 - Croatia's Marin Čilić and Ivan Dodig have advanced to the tennis doubles semifinals in Tokyo! 

Marin Čilić and Ivan Dodig defeated Great Britan's Andy Murray / Joe Salisbury 4-6, 7-6 (2), 10-7 after two hours and 15 minutes of play at the Ariaki Center on Wednesday. 

Čilić and Dodig 6:4 lost in the first, and after winning the first, the British duo broke in the second as well. Murray and Salisbury looked better on the court and led 4:2, but in the eighth game, the Croatian side broke and returned to the game. 

In the tie-break of the second set, Čilić and Dodig played excellently and won the third set with three mini-breaks. Čilić and Dodig used the second match point to win the match and advance to the semifinals. 

In the semifinals, Čilić and Dodig will play against New Zealand's Michael Venus and Marcus Daniell. They knocked out the favored Colombian side, Cabal and Farah.

Two Croatian doubles teams are still playing today - Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić, and Ivan Dodig and Darija Jurak in mixed doubles.

If Mektić and Pavić win their match, Croatia will certainly have at least a bronze medal in tennis, because, in case of defeat, both Croatian teams would meet in the semifinal in the bronze medal fight. Mektić and Pavić play against Japan's McLachlan and Nishikori.

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July 28, 2021 - Brothers Martin and Valent Sinković have done it again! The celebrated Croatian rowing team has a chance to fight for a medal in the Olympic rowing final in Tokyo on Thursday. 

Brothers Martin and Valent Sinković advanced to the final of coxless pairs at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, winning their semifinal race with a time of 6:15.63, reports HRT.

Behind them was Serbia's Mackovic / Vasic (6: 17.47) and Canada's Langerfeld / McCabe (6:19.15). The Croatian team led from the beginning to the end of the race and certainly reached a new grand final with ease. The final race is scheduled for Thursday at 14:18 pm CET.

In the second qualifying group, the Romania, Denmark, and Spain crews also won a place in the final.

"The semifinals have passed and we are very satisfied with the race. There were difficult conditions, wind, heat, strong sun, but we did well despite everything. We controlled the race from start to finish so we are very happy," said Valent Sinković.

"We controlled the race from the first to the last stroke, after 200-300 meters we had everything under control. Tomorrow we will have to go faster and stronger, but we can do it. In the end, we didn’t do our best which is good because we have more space. We are satisfied with the race and we can't wait for tomorrow's final," said Martin Sinković.

"As for the final, there were really interesting results today. In the first group, it was uncertain until the end, it was an interesting race, surprising that Australia failed to reach the final. In our group, Holland also dropped out, so we expect an interesting race tomorrow. It is difficult to say who our main competition is like this at first, probably Romania, but we have to paddle even better and go to the maximum from start to finish," added Valent Sinković.

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July 27, 2021 - Olympic gold medalist Matea Jelić should expect a welcome reception in her hometown of Knin upon returning from the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Taekwondo fighter Matea Jelić defeated Great Britain's Lauren Williams in the taekwondo gold medal fight at the Olympic Games in Tokyo on Monday, reports Index.hr.

"We are excited and overjoyed because of our Mateja. The whole town watched the fight for gold, but, unfortunately, due to epidemiological measures, we could not organize a joint gathering. However, every house in Knin was with her today," Knin Mayor Marijo Ćaćić told Index, euphoric about the great success of 23-year-old Mateja Jelić from Knin, who defeated Great Britain's Lauren Williams in a dramatic taekwondo final and achieved the greatest success of Croatian taekwondo.

While she is a member of TK Marjan Split today, she made her first steps in the Knin club DIV.

"I am proud of the results we achieve, as well as the great work and effort invested by our coaches and athletes. Mateja's medal is not accidental, and Knin did not accidentally win a gold medal at the Olympics. Congratulations to the professional team from Split Marjan, who continued what started here in Knin. Mateja decided to go to Split to college, and it was logical for her to continue her career in the most trophy-winning club. Marjan Split is celebrating two medals today; we must not forget Toni Kanaet, whom I congratulate on this occasion. I can't even describe how I feel; this is wonderful, although I have to say that we are already used to Mateja's successes. She delighted us eight years ago when she became a junior world champion. She is our queen of Knin. I tried to get her parents, but mother Ljiljana does not want to be in the media; she told me that this is just Mateja's day," the mayor of Knin told Index.

It is known that Matea dreams of a welcome reception in Knin with an Olympic medal around her neck, and Ćaćić confirmed that her dream would surely come true.

"We will prepare a reception for her following epidemiological measures. The situation in Knin is good so far; today, we have no new cases of infection, but only a few people from the same family who contracted COVID-19 earlier. As soon as I contact Mateja's family, we will agree on all details around the reception. We are expecting it in a couple of days, and it will be something special," said the mayor of Knin.

Mateja was accompanied throughout her career by Šibenik-Knin County Prefect Marko Jelić.

"Today, everyone knows who Matea Jelić is and what her name is. Of course, I say it a bit jokingly, but I know very well how much effort she put into getting to the top step of the podium. 

I have known her since she was a child; she went to school with my daughter. She is a top girl, completely focused on what she wants to achieve. Behind her, believe me, is a lot of sacrifices, but she has achieved the goal she set. I'm proud of her. I did not doubt that she would take an Olympic medal one day, and I believed it would be gold. She didn't surprise me at all; I was just afraid that some injury would burden her," Jelić told Index and added:

"Her success means a lot to our Knin. Whoever comes to our city feels love for it, but we who live here feel a little different today. Matea is the European champion, today she is also an Olympic winner and can choose where to spend her free time and create her life. However, she finds her peace in Knin, at the Krčić waterfall. She knows that we were all with her, from the first steps to the Olympic podium," Jelić concluded.

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July 26, 2021 - Taekwondo fighter Matea Jelić defeated Great Britain's Lauren Williams in the finals of the 67 kg category at the Olympic Games in Tokyo!

It was the duel of the last two European champions in this category - Jelić won gold in Sofia this year, and Williams won gold three years ago in Kazan.

In the uncertain final, the result was 13-13 entering the final minute, but then Williams with two kicks to the body reached an advantage of 17-13. It was 21-15 for Williams until 15 seconds before the end when Jelić managed to reach colossal success with three kicks to the head.

This is the fourth medal for Croatia in the women's taekwondo competition. Before Jelić, bronze medals were won by Sandra Šarić and Martina Zubčić in Beijing in 2008, Lucija Zaninović in London in 2012, and Toni Kanaet earlier on Monday in Tokyo.

TK Marjan Split thus achieved incredible success today in Tokyo! Jelić's gold is the greatest success for Croatian taekwondo at the Olympic Games.

In her first appearance in Tokyo, Jelić defeated Haitian Lauren Lee 22-2, in the quarterfinals Brazilian Milena Titonelli 30-9, and secured a medal with a 15-4 victory against American Paige McPherson in the semis. 

More soon...

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July 26, 2021 - Croatia's Toni Kanaet wins the taekwondo bronze in Tokyo!

Croatian taekwondo fighter Toni Kanaet (25) won the bronze medal at the Olympic Games, defeating Uzbek fighter Nikita Rafalovich 24-18 in the category of up to 80 kilograms!

After a tied first round that ended 6-6, Kanaet gained a 15-8 advantage in the second. Rafalovich reduced the lead to 15-10 with two punches at the beginning of the third round, and when Rafalovich went for all or nothing, Kanaet punished him with two punches and one to the head to secure the victory.

In the first part of the competition, Kanaet defeated Spain's Raul Martinez Garcia 21-15, only to lose in the quarterfinals to the later Russian finalist Maxim Hramchev with a break after the second round.

By passing Hramchev to the final, Kanaet got the opportunity to fight for the bronze through a rematch. He first overpowered Burkina Faso Faysala Sawadoga with a break at the start of the third round due to too large a difference in points. At the time of the break, it was 30-10 for Kanaet.

This is the first men's Olympic medal for Croatia in taekwondo!

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