Breaking Records in Water and Underwater Sports: Water polo king of the ring Serbia 🇷🇸

Serbia is not a big country. With somewhere between six and seven million people living in this country, this Balkan country is one of the smallest in Europe. Yet, it is one of the most successful countries in the world when it comes to certain sports. While everyone knows that Serbs are prolific in basketball and that Novak Djokovic is dominating the world of tennis, we’re not going to talk about any of those today.

In recent years, Serbia has emerged as one of the leading organisers of underwater sports events: European Championships, World Championships and World Cups in disciplines such as freediving and finswimming. Serbia also has multiple world champion and world record holder in static apnea Branko Petrovic, who can hold his breath for more than 12 minutes.

Instead, we are going to focus on water polo. That’s right, you heard it well. Water polo is the joy and pride of Serbia. It’s not football, it’s not basketball, and it’s not tennis. For Serbs, water polo is one of the most popular sports. The reason is simple: Serbs are too good at water polo. It is interesting to see how prolific Serbs are in water polo, considering that they are not a country with an exit to a sea or an ocean. The same can be said for Hungary. Water polo is a Danube sport, it would seem.

The best part is that Serbs are not only in love with water polo but also very good at it. Saying that Serbia is good at water polo doesn’t do it justice. We’re talking about one of the world’s most decorated nations in this sport. Remember this when you log into your Stake.com account, as we’re not far removed from the upcoming water polo World Cup. For now, we will focus on Serbia’s past successes in water polo before we start looking toward their imminent future success. 

How Good is the Serbian Water Polo Team? 

Without exaggerating matters even a little bit, the Serbian water polo team is the best in the world. They’re seen as such not only because they dominate in the pool but also because they can prove it with the number of silverware won. If we look at every international medal won by the Serbian water polo team, the number stands at 75. Thanks to this number, the Water Polo Federation of Serbia is the most successful one on a global scale. 

While 75 medals sounds like a made-up number, it is true. This number puts Serbia at the top of the water polo game, ranking them above another powerhouse in this sport – Hungary. Currently, Serbia is leading Hungary by six medals, giving the Water Polo Federation of Serbia this prestigious title. Considering how much talent Serbia has and how much is invested in water polo, if you’re a fan of online sports betting, you can bet on Serbia winning the upcoming World Cup, as it’s the safest bet. 

If you didn’t know, Serbia, under that name, is a relatively young country. Their success stems from the past outings of countries such as Yugoslavia and Serbia & Montenegro. Both FINA and LEN admit that the water polo team of current Serbia is the legal and spiritual successor of medals won under different names in the past, which makes it their joint success that is now part of proud Serbian water polo history. 

Serbian water polo history is rich, and they have won all major water polo tournaments more than once. As far as the World Cup goes, they’re the record holders with five gold medals. As if that’s not enough, Serbia has also won the FINA Water Polo World League 15 times. By now, it is evident that the Serbs know how to swim. But we will do the honor and list all of the medals they have won in the past. Let us start with their success at the Olympic games. 

Olympic Games

For most athletes, the Olympic games are the pinnacle of sports. As an Olympic sport, water polo is a source of joy and pride for Serbs. Despite their historic success in water polo and presence on the global stage, the Serbs have waited quite a long time for an Olympic gold. Their first gold medal was won in Rio de Janeiro back in 2016. It was hard to believe that it was the moment that started the record-breaking era of Serbian water polo. Two Olympic games later, the Serbs can now brag that they have won gold Olympic medals at three consecutive Olympic games and have repeated their success in Tokyo and Paris. Considering that twelve years have passed since Rio to Paris, it is evident that even the new generation of Serbian water polo players has what it takes to dominate the world of water polo. If you’re into sports betting online, you can bet that the Serbs will be the favorites to win it all in Los Angeles in three years. 

The most impressive part is that Serbia has reached the semi-finals of the Olympic games seven consecutive times, starting with the Olympic games in Sydney in 2000. They lost the final to Hungary in 2000, only to win the Bronze thrice in Athens, Beijing, and London. Today, this Serbian team is seen as one of the best ever, as only Hungary, England, and USA female water polo teams have won the Olympic games three consecutive times. 

World Cup

Serbia has been dominating water polo left and right. In addition to the Olympic games, the water polo World Cups are no exception to the Serbian national team dominating them. Not only did the Serbs take gold home on more than a few occasions, but they are also the leading favorites to win it again. At the moment, Serbia has 12 World Cup medals. They have won five gold medals, starting with the 1986 gold medal in Madrid, Spain, and wrapping it up with a gold medal in 2015 Kazan, Russia. 

As far as silver medals go, Serbia has won two of those. Both have been won in the Far East, as the Serbs took home silver from Fukuoka, Japan, and Shanghai, China. Regarding bronze medals from the World Cup, Serbia has won 5 bronze medals. For a small nation such as Serbia, there was more than one occasion when Bronze shined brighter than gold, and Serbs felt like that at tournaments at Belgrade in 1973, Berlin, Germany in 1978, Perth, Australia in 1998, Barcelona, Spain in 2003, and Budapest, Hungary in 2017. 

In addition to the Olympic games, the water polo World Cup is the biggest stage for most athletes, and the Serbs are always expected to show up and perform at the biggest stages in water polo. 

European Water Polo Championship

While water polo is an internationally recognized sport, you can already tell that European powerhouses such as Hungary and Serbia dominate it. So, it is no wonder that some of the biggest battles in this sport have been fought at European Championships. Serbia has been dominating this competition for years now, and they have 24 medals to show for it. 

We’re talking about gold medals at the European Championships in Athens, Greece, 1991; Budapest, Hungary, 2001; Kranj, Slovenia; 2003; Belgrade, Serbia, 2006; Eindhoven, Netherlands; 2012; Budapest, Hungary, 2014; Belgrade, Serbia, 2016, and Barcelona, Spain, 2018. 

The silver was taken home by the Serbs at Budapest, Hungary, 1958; Leipzig, East Germany, 1962; Jönköping, Sweden, 1977; Sofia, Bulgaria, 1985; Strasbourg, France; 1987; Bonn, Germany; 1989; Seville, Spain, 1997, and Malaga, Spain, 2008. 

As far as bronze medals go, the Serbian water polo team was successful in  Vienna, Austria, in 1950; Utrecht, Netherlands, 1966; Barcelona, Spain; 1970; Vienna, Austria; 1974; Split, Yugoslavia; 1981; Rome, Italy; 1983; and Zagreb, Croatia, 2010. 

Serbia’s Continual Success  

As you can see, Serbia has come home with a medal from almost every competition in history. Their dominance was confirmed at the Olympic games, World Cups, and European Championships.  The continual success that the Serbian water polo team manages to have a year in and year-round is almost unprecedented in the world of sports. One could argue that some Serbian basketball teams were comparable to the USA Dream Team in sheer dominance and continual success. 

Water polo is played in Serbia at all levels, and the country’s talent factory never stops producing talent. Throughout history, Serbia has had some of the best players in the world who will be remembered. We’re going to write a few lines about the ones who stand out even in the competition of the best that Serbia has always had at its disposal. 

The Best Players in Serbian Water Polo History

As we said, the Serbian water polo team has had unprecedented success. It was all thanks to a slew of super-talented players they have produced. Below, you will have a list of those that stood out even at the highest standards set:

Vladimir Vujasinovic – one of the best players in history and the former Serbian national team captain. He has won numerous gold medals at the Olympic Games and World and European championships.

Filip Filipovic – multiple gold medalists at the Olympic Games and three-time MVP, known for his incredible shooting and leadership skills.

Aleksandar Sapic – legendary scorer, one of the most effective water polo players in history with over 1,000 goals in his career.

Dejan Savic – the most decorated Serbian coach and former national team player, known for the medals he won as a player and a coach.

Andrija Prlainovic – winner of numerous gold medals at World and European championships, recognizable for his precision and power of the shot.

Zivko Gocic – long-time captain of the national team, known for his defensive skills and leading the team to Olympic gold.

Milan Aleksic – a long-standing pillar of defense, winner of gold medals at the Olympic Games, World and European Championships.

Duško Pijetlovic – a dominant center with multiple gold medals, known for his physical strength and positioning in attack.

Gojko Pijetlovic – goalkeeper with gold medals from the Olympic Games, the World Championship and the European Championships.

Stefan Mitrovic – a long-time member of the national team, known for his great defenses and winning gold at the Olympic Games.

Branislav Mitrovic – an exceptional goalkeeper, part of the golden generation of Serbia with Olympic and world titles.

Dušan Mandic – Olympic, world and European champion, and winner of the Champions League. He currently plays for Ferencvaros, and with three gold and one bronze Olympic medal, Dusan Mandic is the most decorated Serbian Olympian.

Nikola Radjen – defensive specialist, known for his exceptional defenses and great contribution in winning numerous medals.

Slobodan Soro – goalkeeper known for great saves in crucial moments, won gold at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Vanja Udovicic – long-time captain, one of the key players in winning gold at the world and European championships.

Djordje Filipovic – an experienced defender, a member of the team that won gold medals at the European and World Championships.

Nikola Jaksic – winner of Olympic, world and European gold, as well as the Champions League. With three Olympic gold medals, Nikola Jaksic is among the most trophy-winning Serbian athletes.

Igor Milanović – two-time Olympic champion and one of the best centers in the history of Yugoslav and Serbian water polo.

Dejan Udovicic – former coach of Serbia, known for successfully leading the national team to world and European gold.

Aleksandar Ciric – striker with impressive shooting skills, winner of numerous medals with the national team.

Miloš Cuk – a key player in many titles, known for his strong shot and contribution in attack.

Denis Sefik – legendary goalkeeper, known for exceptional defenses in the most important matches, winner of Olympic medals.

Aleksandar Sostar – one of the best goalkeepers in the history of water polo, two-time Olympic champion with Yugoslavia.

Summary

In water polo, seeing those who stand on the same plain as the Serbian national team is rare. Hungary is the only nation that has come close historically, and they have a long-lasting rivalry with the Serbian national team. Among other rivals, Serbia has a historic rivalry with Croatia and Montenegro as regional rivals in games that go far beyond the sport. Despite changing names, players, and allegiances, the Dolphins, nicknamed the team, remain a force in the water polo world that everyone wants to overcome. So far, it has proven to be a challenging task for many, and it will be like that in the future, too. 

With upcoming competitions at the World Cup and European Championship and the looming Olympic games in Los Angeles, Serbia already has plenty of future success on the plate. 

Last Updated on January 14, 2025