Central Croatia has been struck by a series of earthquakes yesterday and today. Life in several cities is paralyzed. At least seven people were killed. The epicenter was near Petrinja, which is about 30 miles from the capital, Zagreb.
The national water polo team of Croatia, which started preparations on Sunday, stopped all the activities because of the earthquake.
At the moment of the strongest quake (Tuesday, shortly after noon), Croatia water polo players trained in the pool in Zagreb.
“The players were in the water at that moment. They and everyone who was by the edge of the pool felt the earthquake. It was horrible. Water began to overflow over the edge of the pool as if it was a tsunami. Everything creaked, rumbled. All got feared, and the players ran out of the pool building, without clothes. They were dressed only in swimming trunks”, Croatia head coach Ivica Tucak described the terrible moments in an interview with the Croatian Water Polo Federation website.
Of course, Tuesday’s training was interrupted immediately, while the preparations, which were supposed to last until December 30, have been suspended.
The Croatian team will gather again on January 2 in Zagreb. The team will train in the capital of Croatia until January 6, when they are traveling for Debrecen. Croatia will play at the European qualification tournament for the World League Super Final (January 8 – 10). On January 8, Croatia will face the Montenegrin national team in the quarterfinals in Debrecen.
The Croatian Government proclaimed January 2 as a day of mourning in honor of the earthquake victims.
