Bronze Relay Returns
Croatian swimmers Jere Hribar, Vlaho Nenadić, Vili Sivec, and Toni Dragoja landed in Zagreb with bronze around their necks, and head coach Pero Kuterovac urged the media to celebrate the boys, not him.
Croatian swimmers Jere Hribar, Vlaho Nenadić, Vili Sivec, and Toni Dragoja landed in Zagreb with bronze around their necks, and head coach Pero Kuterovac urged the media to celebrate the boys, not him.
The Croatian swimming delegation returned on August 17, 2026, from the European Championships in Paris, and the welcome was bigger than the send-off, which Jere Hribar immediately interpreted as a sign of success. The bronze medal in the 4 x 100-meter freestyle relay is Croatia's first and only medal at this competition, won by Hribar, Vlaho Nenadić, Vili Sivec, and Toni Dragoja.
The relay broke the Croatian record twice in a single day. In the qualifiers, i.e., the semifinals, they swam 3:13.06, only to improve their time by two seconds in the final and finish with 3:11.08. Only the gold-medal-winning Hungarians and the silver-medal-winning neutral athletes were faster.
For Toni Dragoja, this was his first major senior competition in an Olympic-sized pool, and he particularly stood out with a final leg under 48 seconds. Head coach Pero Kuterovac emphasized that this time is not a "world wonder," but for Dragoja, it shows he has a sub-48-second race in his hands and legs.
"There are two or three more swimmers who are a tenth behind him, no fear that the relay will fall apart," Kuterovac told HRT, adding that Dragoja asked Duje Draganja what is different in America compared to Croatia, and he replied that there he gets to train with eight Olympic finalists every day. "We now have that here."
Jere Hribar, from whom much was expected in the 50 meters, failed to make the final race but was overall satisfied. "We can be pleased-about ten personal bests, six national records," he said. "I expected more from the final, and I know some other national team members also expected a bit more."
Hribar noted that the relay result is the fifth-best time in the world this season and believes Croatia can compete at the World Championships in China in December. "We definitely need to build on this from competition to competition."
Vlaho Nenadić, who besides the relay also made the semifinals in the 100-meter freestyle, stressed the importance of support and said he hopes they have motivated someone to take up swimming. "They don't have to become European or world champion one day, but to develop as a healthy person, so we can be a healthy nation."
Vili Sivec reminded that this medal is sweeter because the same relay was fourth at the European Championships in Belgrade in 2024. "This European Championship was one of the strongest I personally know, stronger than Belgrade 2024," he said, adding that everyone is looking toward the World Championships in China in December.
Head coach Kuterovac asked journalists to write more about the swimmers, coaches, and clubs, rather than about him. "I, as Pero Kuterovac, am irrelevant. I know I'm a public figure, so you mention me where I don't deserve it; I don't need promotion in life. I am support for these swimmers."
He recalled that two years ago in Singapore, he recognized a potential relay for Los Angeles, wrote two sentences, and pushed the story within the swimming federation. "I commend all the coaches who trained them as children; someone had to recognize them back then."
Kuterovac, however, ended on a bitter note, saying he regrets that the academic level does not keep pace with elite sport and that athletes are condemned to go to America. "I will do everything in my power, with my name, to change that-not just for swimmers but for all athletes."
