Politics has not bypassed water polo, so the swimming pool in Kotor - which bears the name of legend Zoran-Džimij Gopčević - is the reason why the Croatian Water Polo Association is threatening to not attend the World Cup Super Finals.
The final tournament is scheduled for April 11-13 in Kotor and Budva, with eight national teams participating (including ours and Croatia, which will meet in the quarterfinals), and today the Water Polo and Swimming Federation of Montenegro received a letter from the Croatian Water Sports Federation that must be seriously considered.
And in the end, it can significantly influence the Superfinal, which provides three visas for qualifying for the World Championship in Singapore in the summer.
"We hereby inform you that the Croatian Football Federation will adhere to the recommendations of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, which unequivocally state that clubs and national teams do not play at the Kotor swimming pool. Therefore, we hereby ask you to resolve the controversial issue of the name of the swimming pool in Kotor at the level of the two states," reads the letter from the Croatian Football Federation sent to the VPSCG.
The HVS then warns:
"In the event that you still decide to organize the World Cup finals in Kotor, our national team will cancel the performance at the cost of sanctions from World Aquatics. We believe that this would not suit anyone, and that it would jeopardize the cooperation between the two Federations, and therefore the holding of the regional league," the statement added.
Last week, HVS Vice President Perica Bukić emphasized that there would be no boycott.
"We will not boycott the World Cup finals if we qualify for them. We expect them to offer us a solution, so we will come to an agreement," said Bukić in the middle of the qualifying tournament in Romania.
Croatian authorities are not allowing water polo players to enter the Kotor pool because they accuse Zoran Gopčević of war crimes in the Morinj camp.
In the regional league, the problem was solved by Primorac and Kataro welcoming the Croatian teams to Budva. Is the "Dragan Trifunović" swimming pool a solution for the World Cup Super Finals as well?
It is not ruled out that everything will remain as planned, with the matches played by Croatia being organized in Budva, and there is a possibility that the Super Final will be organized in Podgorica, the metropolis of tourism. Or just in the capital, which is probably the most realistic option.
It will probably be clearer next week, when the VPSCG should decide on everything, but also inform World Aquatics, and then colleagues from the Croatian Water Polo Association.
What is certain, and what cannot change, is that in addition to Montenegro and Croatia, Spain, Hungary, Greece, Japan, the Netherlands and Germany have secured their place in the Super Finals.
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