“Sharks Eye Olympic Glory Amid Looming Playoff Challenges”
For the Sharks to succeed in Qatar, they will need the real Aleksa Ukropina, Photo: LEN
The results in Zagreb were not favorable for the “sharks”. The question remains how feasible the narratives surrounding them were, but the Montenegrin water polo team accomplished their main objective during their trip to Croatia—others will have to follow suit in twenty days in Doha.
By making it to the quarterfinals of the European Championship, which concluded yesterday, our water polo players secured their spot at the World Championship starting February 5 in Qatar’s capital, where they will be vying for the final opportunity to qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris.
Only four spots are still available for the Games along the Seine, with Croatia, Serbia, and Italy also missing out on qualification for Paris.
The current landscape of world water polo suggests that these remaining slots should be filled by these teams. For Vladimir Gojković’s players to earn an Olympic berth, they will need to reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup.
However, a potential challenge lies in the World Cup playoffs. Specifically, if they do not secure one of the top two positions in group (C) alongside Serbia, the USA, and Japan, the Montenegrin water polo team could face Hungary or Italy from group D in their quest for a quarterfinal spot.
A total of 12 teams will compete at the Paris Games, with six participants already confirmed. Two additional spots are expected to be allocated to representatives from Oceania and Africa at the Doha World Cup—Australia and South Africa.
There’s also the possibility of South Africa withdrawing from the Olympics, which could create an additional opportunity for teams from the World Cup that lack Olympic qualifications—a development that would particularly benefit Romania, which has struggled to compete with the aforementioned teams from the start.
Aside from Spain, who triumphed over Croatia in the European Championship final to secure Olympic qualification, Hungary and Greece (finalists of the Fukuoka 2023 World Cup), Japan (Asian Games 2022 winner), the USA (Pan American Games 2023 champion), and France as the host nation have also qualified.
The “Sharks” will open the World Cup on February 5 against the USA, a match that appears pivotal for their chances of advancing to the quarterfinals.
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