Velimir Kljaić

Velimir Kljaić (10 February 1946 – 12 August 2010) was a Croatian handball player and coach.^[1]

Velimir Kljaić
Kljaić with Croatia during the 1996 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Full name	Velimir Kljaić
Born	(1946-02-10)10 February 1946 Šibenik, FPR Yugoslavia
Died	12 August 2010(2010-08-12) (aged 64) Zagreb, Croatia
Nationality	Croatian
Youth career
Team
–	RK Medveščak Zagreb
Senior clubs
Years	Team
1963–1976	RK Medveščak Zagreb
1976–1980	Klagenfurt
Teams managed
1980–1984	RK Medveščak Zagreb
1984–1988	TuSpo Nürnberg
1988–1992	SG Wallau-Massenheim
1992–1994	TV Grosswallstadt
1994–1996	TUSEM Essen
1996	Croatia
1996–1998	SG Wallau-Massenheim
1998–1999	Croatia
1998–1999	Badel 1862 Zagreb
2000–2001	Egypt
2001–2002	Kuwait
2004–2005	GWD Minden
2005–2006	VfL Gummersbach
2006	RK Lokomotiva Zagreb
2007–2008	TuS Nettelstedt-Lübbecke
Medal record Men's handball Head Coach for  Croatia Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta Team Head Coach for  Egypt African Championship 2000 Algeria Head Coach for  Kuwait Asian Championship 2002 Iran

Career

As a player Kljaić played with RK Medveščak Zagreb and Klagenfurt. As a coach, he won two Croatian championships with RK Zagreb and one Cup. In Germany he was the Coach of the Year in 1992, in which he won German championship and the Cup with SG Wallau-Massenheim.^[1]

As head coach of Croatia men's team he won the gold medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics.^[1][2]

He was also head coach of the national teams of Egypt and Kuwait.^[1]

Personal life

Kljaić was born in the village of Danilo Gornje, administrative part of Šibenik. He was the father of the former handballer Nenad Kljaić who was a part of Croatia's squad in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.^[3]

Velimir Kljaić died on 12 August 2010 of lung cancer in Zagreb.^[4] He was buried five days after his death in Zagreb.^[5]

Honours

Player

Medveščak

• Yugoslav First League
  • Winner (1): 1966
• Yugoslav Cup
  • Winner (1): 1970
• European Champions Cup
  • Finalist (1): 1964–65

Manager

Medveščak

• Yugoslav Cup
  • Winner (1): 1981

Wallau-Massenheim

• Bundesliga
  • Winner (1): 1991–92
• IHF Cup
  • Winner (1): 1992

Croatia

• 1996 Summer Olympics – 1st place

Zagreb

• First A League
  • Winner (1): 1998–99
• Croatian Cup
  • Winner (1): 1999
• EHF Champions League
  • Finalist (1): 1998–99

Egypt

• 2000 African Championship – 1st place

Kuwait

• 2002 Asian Championship – 1st place

Gummersbach

• EHF Champions Trophy
  • Finalist (1): 2006

Individual

• Handball Manager of the Year in Germany – 1992
• The most successful athlete promoter of Croatia in the world: 1996
• Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport – 1996, 2010 (posthumously)
• Best Croatian coach of 1997 by Croatian Handball Federation
• Best Croatian coach of 1997 by Sportske novosti
• Best Croatian coach of 1999 by Croatian Handball Federation
• Best Croatian coach of 1999 by Sportske novosti

References

1. Strahija, Ivana (12 August 2010). "Preminuo Velimir Kljaić". sportnet.rtl.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 26 July 2012.
2. "VIDEO: Umro tvorac prvog hrvatskog olimpijskog zlata Velimir Kljaić". Jutarnji list. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
3. Vukelić, Zvonimir (13 August 2010). "Nenad Kljaić: I tata bi tako htio..." Jutarnji list (in Croatian). Retrieved 25 January 2021.
4. "Nakon teške bolesti umro rukometni velikan Velimir Kljaić". Slobodna Dalmacija (in Croatian). Retrieved 22 January 2019.
5. "Posljednjim pljeskom ispraćen Velimir Kljaić (FOTOGALERIJA)". Slobodna Dalmacija (in Croatian). 17 August 2010. Retrieved 25 January 2021.