Vita Barbić Wins Silver in Javelin Throw
The 18-year-old from Zagreb reached her first world medal with a throw of 56.37 meters, and now a new challenge awaits, the European Senior Championships in Birmingham.
The 18-year-old from Zagreb reached her first world medal with a throw of 56.37 meters, and now a new challenge awaits, the European Senior Championships in Birmingham.
Croatian athlete Vita Barbić won the silver medal in the javelin throw at the World Junior Championships in Eugene, Oregon, USA. A member of AK Dinamo-Zrinjevac, she achieved the greatest success of her career so far on Saturday, August 9, 2026, confirming her status as one of the most talented young throwers in the world.
The competition in Eugene brought an exciting battle for the podium. Barbić opened the final with a throw of 51.36 meters, then in the second round sent the javelin to 56.37 meters and took the lead. However, Egyptian athlete Aseel Osama Abdel Hamid, the current African senior champion, responded in the third round with a throw of 57.35 meters and moved into a lead she never relinquished.
Abdel Hamid improved her best throw of the day to 58.28 meters in the fifth round, while Barbić recorded her second-best result of 55.61 meters in the same attempt. In the final, sixth round, both throwers achieved their best throws of the day, but the final order remained unchanged. Gold went to the Egyptian with 59.82 meters, silver to Barbić with 56.37 meters, while the bronze medal was won by Taiwan's Yu-Chin Tai with a throw of 54.34 meters.
According to Večernji list, Barbić won silver with a throw of 56.60 meters, but Sportske novosti report a result of 56.37 meters. Regardless of this discrepancy in sources, the fact remains that the Croatian representative achieved a historic success.
For the 18-year-old from Zagreb, this is her first medal from world competitions. Two years ago in Lima, she finished fourth, and now she has finally stepped onto the podium. Barbić thus became only the second Croatian female athlete to win a world junior medal in the javelin throw, after Sara Kolak won the gold medal in 2014, also in Eugene.
This is Croatia's 17th medal in the history of the World Junior Championships, nine of which are gold. Barbić has also added her first world medal to her collection, having previously won four European medals. Last year, she became the European U20 champion, a year earlier the U18 champion, and in 2024 she won bronze in the discus throw at the European U18 Championships. Three years ago, she also triumphed at the European Youth Olympic Festival.
There is little time for celebration for the young Croatian javelin thrower. Immediately after the World Junior Championships, she traveled to Birmingham, where the European Senior Athletics Championships begin on Monday, August 10, 2026. The qualification round for the javelin throw is scheduled for Friday, August 14, with the final on Sunday, August 16.
Barbić will thus step into the senior competition just days after her world junior medal and test herself against the best European throwers. There is no pressure, but this is an ideal opportunity for the senior competition to get to know one of Croatia's greatest athletic prospects.
