Change at the Croatian Olympic Committee: Krajač Dismissed
Following a series of scandals and opaque expenditures, new president Josip Varvodić has initiated personnel changes.
Following a series of scandals and opaque expenditures, new president Josip Varvodić has initiated personnel changes.
At the constitutive session of the Council of the Croatian Olympic Committee (COC) held yesterday, August 6, 2026, the employment contract with Secretary General Siniša Krajač was terminated by mutual agreement. This decision marks the first concrete move by the new COC president, Josip Varvodić, who was elected last week and has announced sweeping changes at the top of Croatian sport.
In addition to Krajač, all directors of COC offices have been relieved of their duties. Two are retiring, while the remaining will continue in other positions within the system. Mihael Trkulja, the former coordinator of business operations control at the COC, has been appointed as acting Secretary General, and will serve in this role until a public tender is announced.
The new COC president emphasized that the personnel changes are the first step toward fulfilling the promises from his election program. "We have mutually terminated the employment contract with Mr. Krajač and relieved some directors of their duties. These are the first moves toward what we promised in the main program ahead of the COC elections. I thank the Secretary General and the directors for everything they have done for Croatian sport," Varvodić stated.
He stressed that all decisions were made calmly and by consensus. "We will now appoint acting officials to lead the Croatian Olympic Committee, and we will soon announce public tenders for the Secretary General and select new directors. Mr. Krajač thanked the COC Council," Varvodić added.
Krajač's departure follows a series of scandals that have shaken the national sports governing body. According to 24sata, Krajač and the arrested director Damir Šegota appeared on Vedran Pavlek's list with specified amounts, Krajač with 60,000 and Šegota with 30,000 euros. Numerous irregularities have also been uncovered in sports federations, including cases where Krajač's son, and later Krajač himself with his wife, stayed in a hotel at the expense of the Judo Federation.
Particularly concerning is the fact that the COC spent 4.7 million euros over seven years on various services without open public tenders. Investigations have also revealed a practice of splitting procurements to bypass tenders, with contracts being awarded to the same companies. Among them, the Pula-based agency A.T.I. stands out, with which Krajač signed a sponsorship contract four years ago.
Mihael Trkulja, the appointed acting Secretary General, is not a stranger to the COC. Following the outbreak of the Pavlek affair, he was the coordinator of the extraordinary internal oversight, which was initiated by Krajač himself. The task of this oversight was to verify payments to the Ski Federation for the period from 2016 to 2025, examine the justification of all expenses, and determine whether funds were used for their intended purposes.
Although an option was previously considered for Krajač to remain as acting Secretary General with significantly limited powers, the COC Council ultimately decided that he should immediately leave the position. Under that proposal, he would have needed the approval of the Supervisory Board for all financial decisions and the Council's approval for others, but that scenario was never realized.
