The Most Famous
HANDBALL PLAYERS from Bosnia and Herzegovina
This page contains a list of the greatest Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Players. The pantheon dataset contains 420 Handball Players, 16 of which were born in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This makes Bosnia and Herzegovina the birth place of the 9th most number of Handball Players behind Denmark, and Germany.
Top 10
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Players of all time. This list of famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Players.
1. Abaz Arslanagić (b. 1944)
With an HPI of 50.24, Abaz Arslanagić is the most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages on wikipedia.
Abas Arslanagić (born October 2, 1944) is a Bosnian former handball player and coach who competed for Yugoslavia in the 1972 Summer Olympics and in the 1976 Summer Olympics. In 1972, he was part of the Yugoslav team which won the gold medal at the Munich Games. He played five matches including the final as goalkeeper. Four years later, he was a member of the Yugoslav team which finished fifth in the Olympic tournament. He played all six matches as goalkeeper. In 2013, Arslanagić went into retirement from coaching.
2. Vlado Šola (b. 1968)
With an HPI of 46.95, Vlado Šola is the 2nd most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.
Vladimir "Vlado" Šola (born 16 November 1968) is a Croatian handball coach and former player. Born in Prisoje, Šola played the position of goalkeeper on the Croatian national team and competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics. Widely known for his energetic attitude and famously dyed red hair, he retired from playing professional handball in 2008.
3. Irfan Smajlagić (b. 1961)
With an HPI of 45.36, Irfan Smajlagić is the 3rd most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.
Irfan "Pipe" Smajlagić (born 16 October 1961) is a Bosnian-born Croatian former handball player and current coach Borac Banja Luka and most recently coach of Bosnia and Herzegovina who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics for Yugoslavia and in the 1996 Summer Olympics for Croatia. In 1988 he was part of the Yugoslav national team, which won the bronze medal at the 1988 Olympics. He played five matches and scored 14 goals. Eight years later he won the gold medal with the Croatian national team at the 1996 Olympics. He played six matches including the final and scored 31 goals. He was inducted in the European Handball Hall of Fame in 2023.
4. Svetlana Kitić (b. 1960)
With an HPI of 45.17, Svetlana Kitić is the 4th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.
Svetlana Kitić (Serbian Cyrillic: Светлана Китић, born 19 June 1960) is a Bosnian Serb retired professional handball player who competed at the 1980 and 1984 Summer Olympics for Yugoslavia, and was part of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team in the early 2000s. In 2010, she was voted the best female handball player ever by the IHF.
5. Zlatko Saračević (1961 - 2021)
With an HPI of 45.01, Zlatko Saračević is the 5th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.
Zlatan "Zlatko" Saračević (5 July 1961 – 21 February 2021) was a Croatian professional handball player and coach who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics for Yugoslavia and in the 1996 Summer Olympics for Croatia. From the 2015 to 2017 World Championship he was a commentator on RTL Televizija together with Filip Brkić. Following the domestic league match between RK Podravka, of which he was coach, and RK Lokomotiva, Saračević suffered a cardiac arrest and died in Koprivnica on 21 February 2021. He was 59.
6. Zdravko Zovko (b. 1955)
With an HPI of 44.58, Zdravko Zovko is the 6th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.
Zdravko Zovko (born 28 May 1955) is a retired Croatian handball player.
7. Slavko Goluža (b. 1971)
With an HPI of 41.13, Slavko Goluža is the 7th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.
Slavko Goluža (born 17 September 1971) is a retired Croatian handball player and most recently coach of RK Zagreb.
8. Danijel Šarić (b. 1977)
With an HPI of 39.46, Danijel Šarić is the 8th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.
Danijel Šarić (Serbian Cyrillic: Данијел Шарић; born 27 June 1977) is a Bosnian-Qatari handball player of Serbian descent who plays for Qatari club Al Arabi.
9. Denis Buntić (b. 1982)
With an HPI of 39.02, Denis Buntić is the 9th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.
Denis Buntić (born 13 November 1982) is a retired Croatian handball player. He is a retired player of the Croatian national team. Buntić was born in Ljubuški, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia. He won the silver medal at the 2005 World Championship in Tunisia, and also the silver at the 2009 World Championship on home soil. He was part of the Croatian team that won the bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
10. Venio Losert (b. 1976)
With an HPI of 37.32, Venio Losert is the 10th most famous Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Player. His biography has been translated into 26 different languages.
Venio Losert (born 25 July 1976) is a retired Croatian handball player who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently the goalkeeping coach of Egypt. Losert was born in Zavidovići, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, grew up in Slavonski Brod, SR Croatia. Winning the first medal at the age of 19 at 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, when Croatia won the first gold medal as an independent nation, he is considered the youngest debutant of the team. Losert was also the member of the golden national handball team that won the first place at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. As a youngster he joined Badel Zagreb, the strongest team in the country and was part of the team who won the European Cup in 1992 and 1993. In total he won 7 league titles and 7 cups with Badel Zagreb. In 1999, Venio Losert moved into Spanish handball, signing for Garbel Zaragoza (1999–2000). He later played for various ASOBAL League teams including Teka Cantabria (2000–01), BM Granollers (2001–04), Portland San Antonio (2004–05) and Cangas Frigoríficos del Morrazo. In the Portland team he won the ASOBAL League title. As one of the best goal keepers, with plenty of honours in the game, Venio Losert was given the honour to be the flag bearer in London 2012. Unlike other icons of the handball, Losert has always called himself a "normal, regular and not a showy keeper who only does what's needed to keep the ball out". Losert has always been a key part of the Croatian national team, winning also silver medals in the 1995 and 2005 World Championships. He was voted Croatian player of the year in 1997. In 2016 he became the goalkeeping coach of Croatian national team in staff of Željko Babić.
People
Pantheon has 17 people classified as Bosnian, Herzegovinian handball players born between 1944 and 1988. Of these 17, 16 (94.12%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Bosnian, Herzegovinian handball players include Abaz Arslanagić, Vlado Šola, and Irfan Smajlagić. The most famous deceased Bosnian, Herzegovinian handball players include Zlatko Saračević. As of April 2024, 1 new Bosnian, Herzegovinian handball players have been added to Pantheon including Ana Radović.
Living Bosnian, Herzegovinian Handball Players
Go to all Rankings
Abaz Arslanagić
1944 - Present
HPI: 50.24
Vlado Šola
1968 - Present
HPI: 46.95
Irfan Smajlagić
1961 - Present
HPI: 45.36
Svetlana Kitić
1960 - Present
HPI: 45.17
Zdravko Zovko
1955 - Present
HPI: 44.58
Slavko Goluža
1971 - Present
HPI: 41.13
Danijel Šarić
1977 - Present
HPI: 39.46
Denis Buntić
1982 - Present
HPI: 39.02
Venio Losert
1976 - Present
HPI: 37.32
Mirko Alilović
1985 - Present
HPI: 36.25
Mladen Bojinović
1977 - Present
HPI: 36.24
Zoran Mikulić
1965 - Present
HPI: 35.89
