The Bosnia and Herzegovina men's national sitting volleyball team (; ; ) represents Bosnia and Herzegovina in international sitting volleyball competitions and friendly matches. Bosnia is one of the dominant forces in sitting volleyball worldwide, alongside Iran. The team won a bronze medal, during ECVD European Championships in 1997 in Tallinn. It took nearly two decades later for the nation to win a medal outside the sport of sitting volleyball when Amel Tuka won bronze during 2015 World Championships in Athletics.
The team is the most decorated in Bosnia and Herzegovina sport having won 2 paralympic volleyball gold medals, 4 paralympic silver medals, 3 World Cup titles, and 9 won European Championships straight. The team won World titles and European titles either side of winning Paralympics Gold in 2004 Athens. The team is a member of the world (WOVD) and European (ECVD) sitting volleyball governing bodies.
It is governed by the Association of sitting volleyball of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Savez sjedeće odbojke BiH). Until 1992, Bosnian players like Ševko Nuhanović were part of the Yugoslav national sitting volleyball team.
History
Prior to 1992, during the Yugoslavia days, the team started to take shape. Players were part of Sarajevo based Uporni Sitting Volleyball Club which were champions of Yugoslavia three times in a row. The Bosnia and Herzegovina men's sitting volleyball team includes athletes who were deeply affected by the Bosnian War (6 April 1992 – 14 December 1995). Due to the large number of people injured in the conflict, the country started to invest more in Paralympic sports. Captain Sabahudin Delalić fought for the Bosnian army and lost part of his right leg after a wall fell on him. Safet Alibašić lost one of his legs when he stepped on a landmine.
The team's first major tournament participation was the 1995 European championship. During its qualification phase in early December 1994, the team (all players from Sarajevo club SDI Spid), traveled to Zagreb on a bus riddled with bullet holes in temperatures of 17 degrees below zero. Bosnia along with Austria were the only nations to travel to play Croatia in the qualification tournament (out of 11 invited). Croatia finished undefeated with victories over Austria 3:0 (15:5, 15:8, 16:14) and Bosnia (15:6, 15:8, 15:11). Bosnia beat Austria, however all 3 nations qualified for the finals.
The team made their Paralympic Games debut at Sydney 2000 and won silver. There have been seven total Paralympic podium finishes in sitting volleyball for Bosnia and Herzegovina. They were the only medals in Olympic and Paralympic Games as an independent nation (from Yugoslavia) until Ismail Barlov's silver in 50m breaststroke para swimming in 2024. The 800 metres distance runner Amel Tuka holds another prestigious medal for Bosnia and Herzegovina, a bronze at 2015 World Championships in Athletics in Beijing.
On 21 June 2014, Edin Džeko congratulated the BiH men's national sitting volleyball team after they won 2014 Sitting Volleyball World Championships title, stating "You are our pride and inspiration".
On 10 September 2012, Basketball Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina congratulated the BiH sitting volleyball team upon their paralympic gold medal win at 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, saying "You are a pride of our nation", as did NFSBiH (normalization committee) with Ivica Osim at the head.
Success formula
Height, experience and a strong club league are key to success in sitting volleyball. 80% of the Bosnian national team players come from Sarajevo based and Europe's top two sitting volleyball club sides; SDI Spid and OKI Fantomi. Height was a critical aspect of success for the Iranian national team winning gold over Bosnia at the Rio 2016 Paralympics due to the height advantage of tallest Paralympian Morteza Mehrzadselakjani at 2.46m (8ft 1in), giving his team an advantage in his ability to both block at the net and fire over returns from a much higher trajectory. In the Rio final, Mehrzadselakjani was top scorer for Iran with 28 points. Safet Alibašić top scored for BIH with 16 points and the fastest serve came from Adnan Manko at 68 km/h. Sport investment, financial backing and sprint velocities are other key factors.
Style of play
Bosnia plays an attacking style of volleyball.
Nickname
A popular nickname for Bosnian sport players and/or teams is the Zmajevi or Dragons in English alluding to the famous Bosnian general Husein Gradaščević who fought for Bosnian independence and who was known as the "Dragon of Bosnia". In foreign media, they are sometimes referred to as the Golden Lilies, in reference to the golden lily featured on the coat of arms of the influential Bosnian medieval Kotromanić dynasty.
Sponsorship
The team is sponsored by Sarajevo based telecommunication company BH Telecom d.d. since 1996.
Honours
Seniors Competitive record
Paralympic Games
YearRankPldWinsLossSet FSet APart of Yugoslavia 1980 Arnhem Bronze532109 1984 New York5th place532117 1988 Seoul4th place6331312Total 16973428as Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992 BarcelonaDid not enter – – – – – 1996 AtlantaDid not qualify – – – – – 2000 Sydney8531511 2004 Athens660182 2008 Beijing541124 2012 London761194 2016 Rio532106 2020 Tokyo53297 2024 Paris541136Total 2 Titles4131109640
World Para Volleyball Championship
YearRankPldWinsLossSet FSet APart of Yugoslavia 1983 Delden5th place – – – – – 1985 KristiansandRunners-up – – – – – 1986 Pécs4th place – – – – – 1989 Las VegasDid not enter – – – – – 1990 Assen3rd place – – – – –Total – – – – – as Bosnia and Herzegovina 1994 BottropDid not enter – – – – – 1998 Tehran3rd place871234 2002 CairoChampions761193 2006 RoermondChampions880242 2010 EdmondRunners-up761204 2014 ElblągChampions660182 2018 HagueRunners-up651155 2022 SarajevoRunners-up761184 2026 HangzhouRunners-up752178Total 3 Titles5649715432
European Championships
YearRankPldWinsLossSet FSet APart of Yugoslavia 1981 Bonn5th place – – – – – 1987 SarajevoRunners-up – – – – – 1991 Nottingham– – – – – –Total – – – – – as Bosnia and Herzegovina 1993 JärvenpääDid not enter – – – – – 1995 Ljubljana11th place 1997 Tallinn3rd place 1999 SarajevoChampions550150 2001 SárospatakChampions550151 2003 LappeenrantaChampions550151 2005 LeverkusenChampions770211 2007 NyíregyházaChampions770214 2009 ElblągChampions660181 2011 RotterdamChampions770212 2013 ElblągChampions550150 2015 WarendorfChampions660180 2017 Poreč3rd place6*51173 2019 BudapestRunners-up871242 2021 KemerChampions770211 2023 CaorleChampions880242 2025 GyőrChampions880240Total 12 Titles8280224518
Bosnia played 1 extra opponent in group stage of 2017 championship while Russia/Ukraine/Croatia (other semi-final sides) played 1 less.
Minor tournaments Note: WOVD Intercontinental Cup tournaments serve as Paralympic qualifiers. In 2005 Sarajevo competition; club Sdi Spid faced Iran in the final. YearTournamentPosition 2005 SarajevoWOVD World CupClubs entered 2008 IsmailiaWOVD Intercontinental Cup3rd place 2010 Port SaidWOVD World CupDid not enter 2011 KetteringContinental CupChampions 2012 CairoWOVD Intercontinental CupDid not enter 2016 AnjiWOVD Intercontinental CupDid not enter 2018 TabrizMen's World Super 63rd place
Juniors Competitive record
Junior World Championships YearPositionas Bosnia and Herzegovina 2005 Kamnik Runners-up 2007 Niterói 4th place 2009 Mashhad Did not enter
Junior European Championships YearPositionas Bosnia and Herzegovina 2006 Nyíregyháza Runners-up 2008 Leverkusen Runners-up 2010 Yevpatoria N/A –
Coaches
Coaching staff PositionNameActiveHead coach Ifet Mahmutović2021–presentAssistant coach Ejub Mehmedović1996–presentCo-Trainer Zikret Mahmutović1996–presentTeam manager Miralem Zubović1996–?Team Economist Dževad Šabeta1996–present
Players
Players called up for 2016 Summer Paralympics:
Head coach: Mirza Hrustemović No.NameDate of birthPosition2016 clubUN OKI FantomiUN KSO SpidL KSO SpidUN KSO SpidUN OKI FantomiUN KSO SpidUN KSO SpidUN OKI Fantomi10UN OKI Fantomi11UN KSO Spid12M SKISO "Sinovi Bosne"13M KSO Spid
Players called up for 2015 European Championships:
Sabahudin Delalić (captain), Dževad Hamzić, Asim Medić, Safet Alibašić, Beniz Kadrić, Ermin Jusufović, Muhamed Kapetanović, Nizam Čančar, Ismet Godinjak, Adnan Manko, Mirzet Duran, Adnan Kešmer, Edin Džino, Armin Šehić, Jasmin Brkić, Adin Likić, Damir Grbić.
Players called up for 2012 Summer Paralympics:
Players called up for 2008 Summer Paralympics:
Safet Alibašić, Sabahudin Delalić (captain), Mirzet Duran, Esad Durmišević, Ismet Godinjak, Dževad Hamzić, Ermin Jusufović, Hidaet Jusufović (libero), Zikret Mahmić, Adnan Manko, Asim Medić, Ejub Mehmedović.
Players called up for 2004 Summer Paralympics:
Dževad Hamzić, Nedzad Salkić, Safet Alibašić, Sabahudin Delalić, Ermin Jusufović, Zikret Mahmić, Fikret Causević, Asim Medić, Esad Durmisević, Ejub Mehmedović, Adnan Manko, Ismet Godinjak.
Players called up for 2000 Summer Paralympics:
Dževad Hamzić, Nedžad Salkić, Abid Čišija, Sabahudin Delalić, Nevzet Alić, Zikret Mahmić, Fikret Čausević, Asim Medić, Edin Ibraković, Ševko Nuhanović, Adnan Manko, Ismet Godinjak.
The players in the B&H national side predominantly are selected from two biggest clubs from Bosnia and Herzegovina:KSO Spid Sarajevo and OKI Fantomi Sarajevo (Volleyball Club Invalids Phantoms). The sitting volleyball clubs started by gathering mostly war veterans handicapped during Bosnian War. Both clubs are multiple league champions at home.
KSO Spid KSO Spid was founded on 5 April 1994.
Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball Championship: Winners (21): 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020. Runners-Up (4): 2002, 2006, 2008, 2009. Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball National Cup: Winners (2): 1999, 2000. Sitting Volleyball Champions League: Winners (7): 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2010 Runners-Up (4): 1998, 1999, 2004, 2007. 3rd Place (1): 2008. Sitting Volleyball World Club Championship: Runners-Up (2): 2003, 2005. Sitting Volleyball Sarajevo Open: Winners (1): 2004.
OKI Fantomi OKI "Phantom" were established in 1995 in Sarajevo.
Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball Championship: Winners (5): 1996, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2009 Runners-Up (8): 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2012. Bosnia and Herzegovina Sitting Volleyball National Cup: Winners (1): 2009 Sitting Volleyball Champions League: Winners (3): 2004, 2007, 2008. Runners-Up (4): 2003, 2005, 2006, 2011. 3rd Place (1): 2001. Sitting Volleyball Sarajevo Open: Winners (12): 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016. Runners-Up (3): 2004, 2005, 2013.
Sarajevo Open
Organised annually by OKI Fantomi volleyball club, Sarajevo Open has grown into a tournament of prestige for national teams and elite club sides.