After being the selector of the Serbian national water polo team Uroš Stevanović resigned due to disagreements with the new management of the Water Polo Association of Serbia (VSS), and 11 trophy-winning water polo players left the national team.
Last week, after the two mandates of President Viktor Jelenić, a former representative of Serbia and Brazil was elected as the President of the Supreme Court. Free Soro.
After Stevanović's resignation, 11 players who won gold medals at the Olympic Games in Paris and the European Championship in Belgrade were announced.
Nikola Jakšić, Dušan Mandić, Strahinja Rašović, Sava Ranđelović, Đorđe Lazić, Nemanja Vico, Nikola Dedović, Viktor Rašović, Petar Jakšić, Radoslav Filipović and Radomir Drašović are leaving the national team.
They pointed out that Soro repeatedly tried to discredit and belittle all their successes in the past few years through statements.
"Our gold medals were not in the least a reflection of current inspiration, as stated by Slobodan Soro, but of years of great sacrifices, training, togetherness and struggle," the water polo players announced.
They pointed out that several players from the current team of the national team have already been exposed to the unsportsmanlike actions of Slobodan Sor and his team in the Water Polo Club Novi Beograd, "from being banned from training, being kicked out of the club, not being allowed to play for the national team."
"We believe that even then all those actions were done in order to harm our national team, our community and to prevent the further progress of Serbian national water polo. Our team, as the most trophy-winning national team of Serbia, deserves a president of the Association worthy of everything we have fought for all these years, someone who will defend our interests, stand up for us, value everything won and encourage further winning of trophies," the water polo players pointed out.
The resignation of the head coach of the Serbian national water polo team: Who will succeed Uroš Stevanović?
Soro tried to stop the national team's path to the greatest successes
With the emphasis that they are proud of everything they achieved with the cap of Serbia - every game, every victory, but also every difficult moment that made them stronger as a team, the water polo players announced that as the current European and three-time Olympic champions, they believe that their results have clearly shown who they are and what they represent.
"The last ten years of water polo in Serbia undoubtedly represent one of the most trophy-winning periods in the history of our sport. Throughout our career, we were guided by the principles of respect, dignity and fair play. We showed that respect to everyone, including Slobodan Soro, today's president of the Federation, and in the period when he played for the Brazilian national team and played against Serbia in the biggest competitions," the water polo players announced.
"We witnessed that even then he made maximum efforts to stop the path of the Serbian national team to the greatest successes, but also that he did not succeed in that - which is confirmed by the results that we achieved together to the joy of our entire nation. After a lot of thinking and mutual discussions, we made a unanimous decision to withdraw from playing for the Serbian national water polo team as long as Slobodan Soro and his team of people are at the head of it," added the water polo players.
They emphasized that this decision was very difficult, because playing for the national team has always been the greatest honor and privilege and the dream of every young athlete.
"Nevertheless, we believe that it is necessary that we personally raise our voice against all those who want to discredit and destroy the hard-earned successes of the water polo national team for the sake of their personal interests. We appeal for public support, former and current athletes, people from the world of water polo, and all those who care that the water polo association does not fall into the hands of those who, out of personal dissatisfaction and whim, want to devalue the past and destroy the future of our most trophy sport," concluded the water polo players who have left the national team.
The announcement was not signed only by New Belgrade water polo players Miloš Ćuk, Milan Glušac, Nikola Lukić and Vasilije Martinović.
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