Hrvoje Kačić (13 January 1932 – 14 February 2023) was a Croatian water polo player, legal scholar and politician.

Biography

Kačić was born in

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

on 13 January 1932. At the age of 18, Kačić played for the

Yugoslavia national water polo team Yugoslavia men's national water polo team was the national water polo team that represented the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (1920–1929), the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1929–1941) and the Federal Yugoslavia (1946–1992). They were o ...

at the 1950

European Water Polo Championship The European Water Polo Championship is a sport competition for national water polo teams, currently held biannually and organized by the Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN), the governing European aquatics federation. There are both men's and wom ...

at which the team won bronze. During the 1950s he became out of favour with

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

's communist regime and had his passport confiscated on three occasions. He was jailed by the regime in 1952 which prevented him from joining the national team at the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

. He was also expelled from university. Kačić competed with the national team at the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...

, during which his friend and teammate Ivo Štakula defected to Australia. In 1957, he was awarded the Sportske novosti Croatian Sportsman of the Year. At the 1959 Mediterranean Games he won a gold medal. On the club level he was a long-time member of Croatian waterpolo club ''Jug'' from Dubrovnik, multiple national champion. In 1956 he finished a degree in law. He later finished a doctorate in law in 1965 at the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

, specializing in maritime law. Kačić also wrote about history. He has collaborated with Ivo Pilar Institute of History. Kačić was elected to the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sabor ...

for the first time in the country's first democratic elections in 1990 as an independent candidate. From 1994 to 2001 he was president of the State Commission for Borders of the Republic of Croatia. In 1994 he received the

Croatian Olympic Committee The Croatian Olympic Committee ( hr, Hrvatski olimpijski odbor (HOO)) is the non-profit organization representing Croatian athletes in the International Olympic Committee. The COC organizes Croatia's representatives at the Summer and Winter Olymp ...

's Matija Ljubek Award. He has served on the committee which gives out the

Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport ( hr, Državna nagrada za šport "Franjo Bučar") is the highest recognition that Republic of Croatia gives for extraordinary achievements and contributions of remarkable meaning for the development of sport in Cr ...

. Kačić still actively supported Croatian water polo, retaining a position in the

Croatian Water Polo Federation The Croatian Water Polo Federation (HVS) ( hr, Hrvatski vaterpolski savez) is the governing body of water polo in Croatia. It is based in Zagreb. League system It also organizes the Croatian Cup of Water Polo as well as the Croatian national wa ...

and supporting the national team. Kačić died on 14 February 2023, at the age of 91.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kacic, Hrvoje 1932 births 2023 deaths People from Dubrovnik Croatian male water polo players Croatian lawyers Representatives in the modern Croatian Parliament Olympic medalists in water polo Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Yugoslavia Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Yugoslavia Competitors at the 1959 Mediterranean Games Mediterranean Games medalists in water polo Water polo players at the 1956 Summer Olympics Water polo players at the 1960 Summer Olympics

Biography

See also

References

External links