The second part of our review of interesting details about the history of European championships is dedicated mostly to unbeaten records and players who left the strongest marks. How long will the records of Filip Filipovic, Manuel Estiarte and Martina Miceli last?
18.473 spectators in Belgrade
The record attendance in the history of the European Championships is 18,473 spectators. This was achieved during the final of the 2016 Europeans held in the Belgrade Arena, Serbia-Montenegro.
This is also the highest attendance ever in a single water polo match. The previous record was set at the final of the women’s tournament of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sidney (USA – Australia), where 17,000 fans were present in the stands.
FIlip Filipovic’s records
Filip Filipovic is the record-holder in the number of European water polo titles, winning the gold medal six times. He debuted at the Europeans at the age of 16 as a player on the 15-player roster of Serbia and Montenegro that won gold in Kranj in 2003. He played an important role in Serbia’s winning teams at the European Championships in 2006, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018.
Filip Filipovic Photo by Laszlo Balogh/Total Waterpolo
Filipovic’s four teammates, Slobodan Nikic, Dusko Pijetlovic, Andrija Prlainovic and Zivko Gocic, won five medals each.
All of them retired from playing water polo or from the national team.
Novi Beograd’s captain will remain the record holder for a long time because only one player with four gold medals still plays for his national team. It’s Serbia goalkeeper Branislav Mitrovic (38), who clinched the titles in Serbia’s winning streak between 2012 and 2018.
Other players with four titles are former players of the Serbian national team, Milan Aleksic, Stefan Mitrovic and Milos Cuk, and three Hungarians who participated in the winning teams at the first four Europeans in water polo (1926 – 1934): Marton Homonnai, Alajos Keseru and Jozsef Vertesy.
Filipovic and Hungarian ace Tamas Kasas are record holders by the number of podiums at the Europeans. Besides six titles, Filipovic won one silver and one bronze between 2003 and 2018. Kasas clinched two gold, two silver and four bronze medals (1995 – 2012).
Martina Miceli’s records
Martina Miceli holds a record for female tournaments with seven medals between 1991 and 2006 (four gold, two silver and one bronze).
Seven ladies won four gold medals at the European Championships apiece. All of them are retired players – six Italians who clinched the titles in 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2003: Martina Miceli, Maddalena Musumeci, Carmela Allucci, Francesca Conti, Giusi Malato and Melania Grego, and the Dutch Hedda Verdam (1985, 1987, 1989 and 1993).
Manuel Estiarte’s records
Spanish water polo legend Manuel Estiarte was the top scorer of the Championships six times (1981, 1983, 1989, 1991, 1993 and 1997). His record at a single tournament is 36 goals in 8 games at the 1991 European Championships. Nobody but Estirarte scored more than 36 goals in a single tournament.
Estiarte won only two European Championships medals – silver in 1991 and bronze in 1993.
Manuel Estiarte with Felipe Perrone Photo by L.Balogh
However, Rudi van Feggelen (Netherlands) achieved a real feat by scoring 35 goals in six games at the 1950 European Championships. At that time, there were fewer goals than today because the rules and tactics differed from today’s. The Dutch won gold in Vienna with six wins in as many games, scoring 58 goals. Only 23 weren’t netted by Feggelen.
Feggelen’s fellow countrywoman, Alice Lindhout, is the record holder in the number of goals scored at a single European Championships for ladies. She found the net 31 times in seven games in Leeds in 1993. The Netherlands won the gold medal in Great Britain.
Best scorer with no win
It happened once that the best scorer of the European Championships was a player of a team that didn’t record a single win in the tournament.
Malta’s Steve Camilleri scored 21 goals in seven games at the 2016 European Championships in Belgrade. His national team suffered six defeats and one game ended in a tie. Still, Malta didn’t finish in the last position. The 15th-place match between Malta and Turkey ended in a 10:10 draw. Malta won 15th place after a penalty shootout.
Biggest victories
The Netherlands women’s team has recorded the biggest win in the history of the European Championships. The Dutch beat Sweden 37:1 at the 1st Women’s ECH in Oslo in 1985.
Gergo Zalanki Photo:K.Vulovic
Hungary is the record-holder of the male Championships. The Hungarians defeated Malta 26:0 in Budapest in 2020, with seven goals from Gergo Zalanki (from as many shots), six from Denes Varga, etc. Hungary chased a goal-difference to win 1st place in the group. Before that game, Croatia held the record with a 26:2 victory over Austria in Vienna in 1995.
The shortest competition
The first post-World War 2 European Aquatic Championships took place in Monte Carlo in 1947.
The competitions in all aquatic sports were only five days long (September 10 – 14). However, it was a feat that the Championship was organized in Europe, which was still recovering from the war.
Hungary, which won all five gold medals before World War 2, suffered its first-ever loss in the European Water Polo Championships history. The Hungarians were beaten by Sweden (3:5) in Monaco. The day before, they shared the points with Yugoslavia (3:3).
Ten teams participated in a five-day tournament in Monte Carlo, and 18 games were played. Italy won gold, Sweden silver, and Belgium bronze.
All medal winners, Women
1985 (Oslo): 1. Netherlands, 2. Hungary, 3. West Germany
1987 (Strasbourg): 1. Netherlands, 2. Hungary, 3. France
1989 (Bonn): 1. Netherlands, 2. Hungary, 3. France
1991 (Athens): 1. Hungary, 2. Netherlands, 3. Italy
1993 (Leeds): 1. Netherlands, 2. Russia, 3. Hungary
1995 (Vienna): 1. Italy, 2. Hungary, 3. Netherlands
1997 (Seville): 1. Italy, 2. Russia, 3. Netherlands
1999 (Prato): 1. Italy, 2. Netherlands, 3. Russia
2001 (Budapest): 1. Hungary, 2. Italy, 3. Russia
2003 (Ljubljana): 1. Italy, 2. Hungary, 3. Russia
2006 (Belgrade): 1.Russia, 2. Italy, 3. Hungary
2008 (Malaga): 1. Russia, 2. Spain, 3. Hungary
2010 (Zagreb): 1.Russia, 2. Greece, 3. Netherlands
2012 (Eindhoven): 1. Italy, 2. Greece, 3. Hungary
2014 (Budapest): 1. Spain, 2. Netherlands, 3. Hungary
2016 (Belgrade): 1. Hungary, 2. Netherlands, 3. Italy
2018 (Barcelona): 1.Netherlands, 2. Greece, 3. Spain
2020 (Budapest): 1. Spain, 2. Russia, 3. Hungary
2022 (Split): 1. Spain, 2. Greece, 3. Italy
Medal table: 1. Netherlands 12 (5 gold, 4. silver, 3 bronze medals), 2. Italy 10 (5, 2, 3), 3. Hungary 14 (3, 5, 6), 4. Russia 9 (3, 3, 3), 5. Spain 5 (3, 1, 1), 6. Greece 4 (0, 4, 0), 7. France 2 (0, 0, 2), 8. West Germany 1 (0, 0, 1)
Note: The first criterion for the rankings is the number of titles, and the second is the number of silver medals.
(The list of the medal winners in the men’s tournaments was published in the 1st part)
