Top players and coaches of the year honoured in Montenegro
News
The Volleyball Federation of Montenegro (OSCG) awarded at their very own premises the best players and coaches of the year 2021 after clubs had cast their votes following shortlists prepared by an ad-hoc commission. The President of the OSCG Assembly, Mr Zoran Vukcevic, OSCG Secretary General Ivan Boskovic and 2000 Olympic gold medallist Igor Vusurovic were involved in the ceremony held in Podgorica.
Cvetko Pajkovic“It is always nice to gather at the end of the year, because it is an occasion for celebrations like this, but also an opportunity to summarise the events that have marked the past 12 months. Although the world has survived one of the most difficult years in history, because of the coronavirus pandemic, and despite the fact that this drastically made life and sports in our country difficult, I can say that the year 2021 was extremely exciting for Volleyball in Montenegro."
OSCG President
“Despite many problems, we managed to successfully finish all the competitions for last season, thus crowning the winners of the national league and national cup, and to bring this year’s half-season to an end. These competitions have helped some young players gain international recognition, and they have now become members of our national teams and renowned clubs from the Balkan region and elsewhere in Europe. We are especially proud of the second consecutive appearance of our men’s national team at EuroVolley, which we secured through brilliant games and first place in our qualifier. Such a result and the final rank at the European Championship are indicators that we can rightly expect that our players will continuously appear at major competitions, thus cementing the status of Montenegro as a Volleyball nation,” he continued.
“It seems to me that the women’s team has never been any closer to qualifying for the European Championship. I am convinced that only the help of the audience at the tournament in Podgorica was missing, with spectators not able to attend because of the pandemic. I would have a lot more to list, but I just want to congratulate the winners on the awards they received. I am aware that the clubs had a very difficult task to choose the best ones, which only shows that some new aces are coming through. I hope that the winners will see these awards as an encouragement to do even more, and everyone else will be motivated to claim such honours at the end of 2022. Once again, I congratulate the winners, and Volleyball and sports fans in general, and I wish all the citizens of Montenegro a Happy New Year”, Pajkovic concluded.
Middle blocker Blazo Milic, who won the national league and national cup titles with OK BUDVA, claimed the prize for the best male player from the domestic championship for the second time in a row. “It is a great pleasure to receive this award again. I want to thank my club, the Volleyball Federation of Montenegro and all the people and coaches who voted for me,” said Milic.
Because of other commitments in Switzerland, Mr Pajkovic presented Bojan Strugar with his award for the top player competing abroad before the actual ceremony. Last season, Strugar won the Swiss Cup and the title of MVP of the championship with the team of TSV JONA. Moreover, he was the best scorer of the regular season and he is currently performing extremely well in Switzerland while wearing the shirt of his new team, Volley NÄFELS.
“I would like to thank everyone who voted for me. I hope to live up to their expectations. Since sport has been a way of life for me since I was a child, this is a great satisfaction and I hope that in the future I will continue to achieve success and be the best version of myself in everything I do,” said Strugar.
Vukasin Cimbaljevic retained the award for the most promising player he claimed in 2020 – with the prize received by his family on his behalf, given his obligations in Vojvodina.
The double crown on the domestic scene brought the prize for the best coach to Milos Markovic. “Individual awards in team sports are always the product of teamwork. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my colleagues in the professional staff, of course the players who contributed to the success we achieved in 2021 and the club management who gave me the opportunity to lead the team,” said the head coach of OK BUDVA.
Marija Bojic, who won the Montenegrin Cup with Galeb, received the most votes to claim the award for the best female player from domestic competitions. “This award means a lot to me and will motivate me to work even harder. I would like to thank my coaches and teammates, as well as all the clubs and coaches who voted for me,” said Bojic.
After winning the latest edition of the national league with Luka BAR, Vladimir Milacic rightfully secured the award for the best coach. “I thank the OSCG for the recognition. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my team, the girls and the management of Luka Bar, which has been helping our club for years. Congratulations to all those who received an award,” said Milacic.
Nikoleta Perovic, who plays in Turkey for TED Kolejliler SK ANKARA, took the prize for the top female player competing abroad but she could not attend the ceremony in Podgorica due to her commitments with the club.
Majda Cakar, a player from the club Rudar in Pljevlja, is the most promising female player in Montenegro. “I thank the people from the Volleyball Federation of Montenegro for this award. It is a great honour to receive this prize and it motivates me to work even harder,” she said.