The Bosnia and Herzegovina men's national sitting volleyball team (; ; ) represents

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

in international

sitting volleyball Sitting volleyball is a form of volleyball for athletes with a disability organized by World ParaVolley. As opposed to standing volleyball, sitting volleyball players must sit on the floor to play. History Sitting volleyball was invented in t ...

competitions and friendly matches. Bosnia is one of the dominant forces in sitting volleyball worldwide, alongside

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. The team won a bronze medal, during ECVD European Championships in 1997 in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

. It took nearly two decades later for the nation to win a medal outside the sport of sitting volleyball when

Amel Tuka Amel Tuka (born 9 January 1991) is a Bosnian middle-distance runner who competes in the 800 metres. His achievements include a silver medal at the 2019 World Championships as well as a bronze medal at the 2015 World Championships. Tuka holds ...

won bronze during

2015 World Championships in Athletics The 2015 IAAF World Championships ( zh, 第十五届世界田径锦标赛), the fifteenth edition of the IAAF World Championships, were held from 22 to 30 August at the National Stadium in Beijing, China. Forty-three nations won medals, 144 of ...

. The team is the most decorated in Bosnia and Herzegovina sport having won 2 paralympic volleyball gold medals, 4 paralympic silver medals, 3 World Cup titles, and 9 won European Championships straight. The team won World titles and European titles either side of winning

Paralympics The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Kore ...

Gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

in 2004 Athens. The team is a member of the world (WOVD) and European (ECVD) sitting volleyball governing bodies. It is governed by the Association of sitting volleyball of Bosnia and Herzegovina (''Savez sjedeće odbojke BiH''). Until 1992, Bosnian players like Ševko Nuhanović were part of the Yugoslav national sitting volleyball team.

History

Prior to 1992, during the

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

days, the beginnings of the team started to take its form. Players were part of

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

based ''Uporni Sitting Volleyball Club'' which were champions of Yugoslavia three times in a row. Bosnia and Herzegovina men's sitting volleyball team includes athletes who were deeply affected by the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

(6 April 1992 – 14 December 1995). Due to the large number of people injured in the conflict, the country started to invest more in Paralympic sports. Captain Sabahudin Delalić fought for the

Bosnian army The Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Oružane snage Bosne i Hercegovine, Оружане снаге Босне и Херцеговине or OSBiH) is the official military force of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Th ...

and lost part of his right leg after a wall fell on him.

Safet Alibašić Safet Alibašić (born 21 December 1982) is a Bosnian male sitting volleyball player. A six-time medalist at the Summer Paralympics, he has won two gold and three silver medals, as well as one bronze across six consecutive Games between 2004 and ...

lost one of his legs when he stepped on a

landmine A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon often concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets as they pass over or near it. Land mines are divided into two types: anti-tank mines, whi ...

. The first major tournament participation came in during 1995 European championship. During its qualification phase in early December 1994, the team (all players from Sarajevo club SDI Spid), traveled to

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

on a bus riddled with bullet holes in temperatures of 17 degrees below zero. Bosnia along with Austria were the only nations to travel to play Croatia in the qualification tournament (out of 11 invited). Croatia finished undefeated with victories over Austria 3:0 (15:5, 15:8, 16:14) and Bosnia (15:6, 15:8, 15:11). Bosnia beat Austria, however all 3 nations qualified for the finals. Team made their Paralympic Games debut at Sydney 2000 and won silver. There were five total Paralympic podium finishes in sitting volleyball for Bosnia and Herzegovina. They were the only medals in Olympic and Paralympic Games as an

independent nation Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of a ...

(from

) until Ismail Barlov’s silver in 50m breaststroke para swimming in 2024. The

800 metres The 800 metres, or 800 meters (American and British English spelling differences#-re.2C -er, US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of a ...

distance runner

holds another prestigious medal for Bosnia and Herzegovina, a bronze at

in Beijing. On 21 June 2014,

Edin Džeko Edin Džeko (; born 17 March 1986) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a striker for and captains both Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. He is the all-time top goalscorer and most capped ...

congratulated the BiH men's national sitting volleyball team after they won ''2014 Sitting Volleyball World Championships'' title, stating "You are our pride and inspiration". On 10 September 2012, Basketball Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina congratulated the BiH sitting volleyball team upon their paralympic gold medal win at

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Sum ...

in London, saying "You are a pride of our nation", as did NFSBiH (normalization committee) with

Ivica Osim Ivan Osim (6 May 1941 – 1 May 2022), best known as Ivica Osim, was a Bosnian professional Football player, footballer and Manager (association football), football manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Bosnian football managers of all ...

at the head. Success formula Height, experience and strong club league are key to success in the sitting volleyball. 80% of the Bosnian national team players come from

based and Europe's top two

club sides; SDI Spid and OKI Fantomi. Height is a critical aspect of successful team as was case with

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

national team winning gold over Bosnia at Rio 2016 Paralympics final due to height advantage of tallest

Paralympian The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Kore ...

Morteza Mehrzadselakjani at ''2.46m (8ft 1in)'', giving his team an advantage in his ability to both block at the net and fire over returns from a much higher

trajectory A trajectory or flight path is the path that an object with mass in motion follows through space as a function of time. In classical mechanics, a trajectory is defined by Hamiltonian mechanics via canonical coordinates; hence, a complete tra ...

. In the Rio final; Mehrzadselakjani was top scorer for Iran with 28 points.

top scored for BIH with 16 points. Fastest serve came from Adnan Manko at 68 km/h. Sport investment, financial backing and sprint velocities are other key factors. Style of play Bosnia play an attacking style of

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

. Nickname A popular nickname of all Bosnian sport players and/or teams is the ''Zmajevi'' or ''Dragons'' in English alluding to the famous Bosnian general

Husein Gradaščević Husein Gradaščević (''Husein-kapetan'') (31 August 1802 – 17 August 1834), also known as Zmaj od Bosne (lit. 'Dragon of Bosnia'), was an Ottoman Bosnian military commander who led an uprising against the Tanzimat, a system of political ref ...

who fought for Bosnian independence and who was known as the "Dragon of Bosnia". In foreign media, they are sometimes referred to as the ''Golden Lilies'', in reference to the golden lily featured on the coat of arms of the influential Bosnian medieval

Kotromanić dynasty The House of Kotromanić ( sr-cyrl, Котроманић, Kotromanići / Котроманићи) was a late medieval Bosnian noble and later royal dynasty. Rising to power in the middle of the 13th century as bans of Bosnia, with control ove ...

. Sponsorship Team is sponsored by

based telecommunication company

BH Telecom BH Telecom is a Bosnian telecommunications company, headquartered in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. History Established in 1992 amidst the breakup of Yugoslavia, this company was the first in Bosnia and Herzegovina to provide GSM, 3G, IPTV, ...

d.d. since 1996.

Honours

Seniors Competitive record

Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disability, disabilities. There are Winter Paralympic Games, Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 ...

World Para Volleyball Championship World Para Volleyball Championship, was played first time at 1983 and organized by World ParaVolley. WOVD World Championships * 2022 Sitting Volleyball World Championships – Men's event * 2022 Sitting Volleyball World Championships – Women ...

European Championships

* Bosnia played 1 extra opponent in group stage of 2017 championship while Russia/Ukraine/Croatia (other semi-final sides) played 1 less.

Minor tournaments

Note: WOVD Intercontinental Cup tournaments serve as Paralympic qualifiers.
In 2005 Sarajevo competition; club ''Sdi Spid'' faced Iran in the final.

Juniors Competitive record

Junior World Championships

Junior European Championships

Coaches

Coaching staff

Players

Players called up for 2016 Summer Paralympics: Head coach:

Mirza Hrustemović Mirza may refer to: * Mirza (name), a name derived from a historical royal and noble title * ''Mirza'' (lemur), a genus of giant mouse lemurs * "Mirza", a 1965 French-language song by Nino Ferrer * Mirza, Kamrup, a town in Assam, India * Mirza me ...

Players called up for 2015 European Championships: Sabahudin Delalić (captain),

Dževad Hamzić Dževad Hamzić (born 4 September 1968) is a Bosnian sitting volleyball player. A member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national sitting volleyball team, he won medals at the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024 Summer Paralympics. Biogra ...

Asim Medić Asim Medić (born 3 August 1969) is a Bosnian sitting volleyball player. A member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national sitting volleyball team, he won medals at the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024 Summer Paralympics. Biography Me ...

Beniz Kadrić Benis (, ) is a village in Guney-ye Sharqi Rural District of the Central District in Shabestar County, East Azerbaijan province, Iran. Demographics Population At the time of the 2006 National Census, the village's population was 1,422 ...

Ermin Jusufović Ermin is a male given name. In the Balkans, Ermin is popular among Bosniaks in the former Yugoslav nations. It is also popular among Albanians. The name is a modification of Emin, following a pattern similar to the modification of Anel to Arne ...

, Muhamed Kapetanović, Nizam Čančar, Ismet Godinjak, Adnan Manko, Mirzet Duran,

Adnan Kešmer Adnan () is traditionally regarded as the patriarch of the Adnanite Arabs, a major Arab lineage that historically inhabited Northern, Western, Eastern, and Central Arabia. The Adnanites are distinct from the Qahtanite Arabs of Southern Arabia, ...

, Edin Džino, Armin Šehić, Jasmin Brkić, Adin Likić, Damir Grbić. Players called up for

: Players called up for 2008 Summer Paralympics:

, Sabahudin Delalić (captain), Mirzet Duran, Esad Durmišević, Ismet Godinjak,

, Hidaet Jusufović (libero), Zikret Mahmić, Adnan Manko,

, Ejub Mehmedović. Players called up for 2004 Summer Paralympics:

, Nedzad Salkić,

, Sabahudin Delalić,

, Zikret Mahmić, Fikret Causević,

, Esad Durmisević, Ejub Mehmedović, Adnan Manko, Ismet Godinjak. Players called up for 2000 Summer Paralympics:

, Nedžad Salkić, Abid Čišija, Sabahudin Delalić, Nevzet Alić, Zikret Mahmić, Fikret Čausević,

, Edin Ibraković, Ševko Nuhanović, Adnan Manko, Ismet Godinjak. The players in the B&H national side predominantly are selected from two biggest clubs from Bosnia and Herzegovina:KSO Spid Sarajevo and OKI Fantomi Sarajevo ''(Volleyball Club Invalids Phantoms)''. The sitting volleyball clubs started by gathering mostly war veterans handicapped during

. Both clubs are multiple league champions at home.

KSO Spid

KSO Spid was founded on 5 April 1994. * Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball Championship: **Winners (21): ''1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020.'' **Runners-Up (4): ''2002, 2006, 2008, 2009.'' * Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball National Cup: **Winners (2): ''1999, 2000.'' * Sitting Volleyball Champions League: **Winners (7): ''2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2010'' **Runners-Up (4): ''1998, 1999, 2004, 2007.'' **3rd Place (1): ''2008.'' * Sitting Volleyball World Club Championship: **Runners-Up (2): ''2003, 2005.'' * Sitting Volleyball Sarajevo Open: **Winners (1): ''2004''.

OKI Fantomi

OKI "Phantom" were established in 1995 in Sarajevo. * Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball Championship: **Winners (5): ''1996'', ''2002'', ''2006'', ''2008'', ''2009'' **Runners-Up (8): ''1997'', ''1999'', ''2000'', ''2001'', ''2003'', ''2005'', ''2007'', ''2012''. * Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball National Cup: **Winners (1): ''2009'' * Sitting Volleyball Champions League: **Winners (3): ''2004'', ''2007'', ''2008''. **Runners-Up (4): ''2003'', ''2005'', ''2006'', ''2011''. **3rd Place (1): ''2001''. * Sitting Volleyball Sarajevo Open: **Winners (12): ''2002'', ''2003'', ''2006'', ''2007'', ''2008'', ''2009'', ''2010'', ''2011'', ''2012'', ''2014'', ''2015'', ''2016''. **Runners-Up (3): ''2004'', ''2005'', ''2013''.

Sarajevo Open

Organised annually by OKI Fantomi volleyball club, Sarajevo Open has grown into a tournament of prestige for national teams and elite club sides and is a highly rated calendar event by participants. International trust fund for demining and mine victims assistance (ITF) is a sponsor of OKI "FANTOMI" Sarajevo and Sarajevo Open.

Results

1994–1999 2000–2009 2010–present ''Legend''

Statistics

Most appearances – All time list

Sorted by date of birth as it is difficult to know exact number of appearances. Most appearances during career playing for Bosnia and Herz. Former Yugoslavia statistics where applicable not included.

Multiple gold medalists at Paralympics

This is a list of multiple Paralympics gold medalists for Bosnia in sitting volleyball, listing people who have won two or more gold medals (sorted by gold medal first).

Biggest wins by Bosnia

Table sorted by points conceded (scored against BiH) in straight sets win (least to most).

Biggest defeats by Bosnia

World ranking

As at 28 September 2016.
Bosnia best European rank in sitting volleyball was 1st. At 2016 Rio Paralympics, Bosnia retained Rank at No. 1 (seed No. 1) as defending Paralympic champion.

Top rivals

Rivals Bosnia predominantly meets in the finals of major competitions listed.

Bosnia–Iran rivalry

Bosnians brought an end to the Iranians' series of four Paralympic golds at

Athens 2004 Athens 2004 may refer to: * 2004 Summer Olympics * 2004 Summer Paralympics The 2004 Summer Paralympics (), the 12th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the Internati ...

, the two teams have met in all the finals of the Paralympic Games and world championships, except in 2014, when the Bosnians faced Brazil. Sitting volleyball is not the only men's sport these two nations faced each other at the biggest stage of a competition. Bosnia played and beat Iran at both 2014 Soccer World Cup and 2015 Handball World Championship.

Bosnia–Germany rivalry

Bosnia since team formation has been an adversary to Germany during European sitting volleyball championships as teams have met at almost every major tournament in later stages of the finals.

Bosnia–Russia rivalry

Bosnia since team formation has been an adversary to Russia during European sitting volleyball championships as teams have met several times at major tournament finals.

Sport in popular culture

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

and Croatian former soccer manager

Slaven Bilić Slaven Bilić (; born 11 September 1968) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. Bilić, who played as a defender, began his career in 1988 with his hometown club Hajduk Split, later having successful spells with Karls ...

played sitting volleyball during International Paralympic Day in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

on 8 September 2011. *

Sergej Barbarez Sergej Barbarez ( sr-cyrl, Сергеј Барбарез; born 17 September 1971) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player who is the manager of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. A forward, Barbarez played for sev ...

met the OKI Fantomi club during the friendly sitting volleyball tournament ''2006

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

Cup'' in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

. ''Fantomi'' beat Germany in the final 2–0.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

SSOBiH.org – Official website
{{WOVD teams Volleyball in Bosnia and Herzegovina National sitting volleyball teams