Croatian historical achievements

Dražen Petrović (Šibenik, 1964 - Denkendorf, 1993) is one of the most prominent and most recognizable Croatian basketball players. After playing for Zagreb Cibona - which he leads twice to the Euroleague finals - he plays for Spanish Real Madrid where he had significant achievements. At the same time he is the leader of the Yugoslav team that won gold medals at the European Championships in Zagreb in 1989 and in the 1990 World Cup in Argentina. In 1990 Petrović went to the United States and became a member of the Portland Trail Blazers, and in 1992 he was a member of the New Jersey Nets when he won the trophy for the best NBA defender of the season. The same year he won the silver at the Olympic Games in Barcelona with the Croatian national team. During his career he played three times at the Olympics where he won two silver and bronze medals; he played twice at the World and European Championships and won two golden and two bronze medals. In his name there is a museum and memorial centre, a basketball hall in Zagreb, and a museum in Buale in Šibenik, and the award bearing his name is given to young athletes. In 2002 he became a part of the Basketball House of Fame.

Krešimir Ćosić (Zagreb 1948 - Baltimore, USA, 1995) was a Croatian basketball player and coach. He noted himself as one of the most successful basketball players in the amateur and American university basketball. The first club he played was Zadar, he played for Zagreb Cibona, and Slovenian and Italian clubs. He has been mentioned six times as a European national player and has been nominated for the best player in European championships in the seventies. He played for the Yugoslav team with which he won the European and world championships and the Olympic Games. By moving to the USA, he became the first NBA player not from the US to play for All American (All Stars) team. At the end of the seventies he became coach of the Slovenian Ljubljana club Olimpija, and he also became a successful coach of the Yugoslav team. In 1996 he was included in the Basketball Hall of Fame. The Croatian National Basketball Cup is named after him, as is the square at Zagreb's sports centre Dom sportova.

Mate Parlov (Split, 1948 - Pula, 2008) was a Croatian boxer. He won gold for Yugoslavia at the 1972 Olympics in Munich in the light-heavyweight category, in Havana at the World Championship in 1974 gold in the same category, and in the European Amateur Championships in Bucharest in 1969, silver in the middleweight category. He also won the gold medal in Madrid in 1971 and in Belgrade in 1973. He won the European Championship in 1976 and in 1978 the World Championship. He stands out as the only fighter with gold medals won at the Olympic, European and World Championships. In his 29 match career he wins 24, while in the amateur he is involved in 310 matches, of which he lost 13. During his career he had already been declared the most successful Croatian athlete of the 20th century, winner of the Golden Glove Award in 1967 and 1969. He is a member of the WBC's Famous Houses and the Pula Hall is named after him.