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Paolo Ghisoni........................

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It's unuseful to hope that the border between sport and politics remains untouched and solid, above all when Slav people are concerned.
The bloody Civil War that destroyed the Balkans is still a memory too alive and present to be easily forgotten, so here that, when guns stop shooting, words and sporting events remember that rivalries between ethnics that faces Adriatic are so far from subsiding.
The Football World Cup in France emphasised the sporting performances of Croatia, a country used to be, in sport, a great power. 'The little country able to great exploits', become one of the national slogan of Independent Republic born in October 1991.
For the almost five millions people the success of a compatriot represents the success of a nation recognised since few years, that gives off an incredible desire of rising.
Basket, handball and tennis are 'the button-hole flowers', sports that feeded true legends as the lamented Drazen Petrovic, the 'Mozart' of basket or, nearer to us, athletes as Toni Kukoc, Goran Ivanisevic, Dino Radja and Iva Majoli. The third place of the football national team in France '98 is however the result destined to receive the most agreements in the future.
It's not to be forgotten that Croatia participated for the first time to World Cup. During 60 very long seconds Suker and his partners have dreamt of getting to the Final against Brazil; so much lasted the illusion that French players, the future winners, couldn't reverse the score. Two goals by Thuram concluded the only moment of real empasse of the French Team in all the competition, and it's significant that Croatia was the only one to frighten French Team.
“Proud to be Croat” was written on the training shirt of the Slav Team. So it was until the end, till the third place conquered against Holland disappointed from the defeat in semi-final, by penalties, against Brazil, or maybe so snob to consider the'little final' a sort of consolation.

So it wasn't for Boban & C., it meant to them to wear the National shirt and defend the colours of their country. In a country just come out the war, the rolling ball suddenly appeared as an occasion of social rise. For the first time these athletes didn't play for the Yugoslavian Socialist Federate Republic; feeling united and involved in a own reason, produced a historical result.

The fault always ascribed to the talented 'gypsies' our neighbours was the lack of continuity, not being able to get trained to discipline in getting an aim. However, the need of demonstrating their own independence to the world couldn't have better limelight than a World Cup semi-final, able to keep millions of people watching TV, enormous chance of resonance.
Not casually after the surprising success in Quarters against Germany every member of Croat delegation, player or manager, waved as a child the National flag, as if it could be affirmed that these people exist and has to be celebrated above all for the sporting events.

“It was the time to win wearing this shirt. You don't know what was to us, when as Yugoslavia we played and we couldn't speak to each other in Croat'. Strong words, told by an old player of our Football League, Zone Boban, fundamental element of Milan and captain of Croatia. With other great people as Boksic, Suker, Prosinecki and Jarni he had already played and won with “the others”, Slavs, in 1987 the World Cup under 20 in Chile.
Also Boban, at the end of the victory against Germany, fainted in the dressing-room, exhausted after the agonistic, but above all emotional, strain. After ten years, passing through a bloody Civil War, this team has become, in the opinion of everyone, the only cause of happiness for the people.
Croat Team could benefit by the support and the extraordinary warmth of their supporters: the “vetreni”, the burning up- this was the nickname of Croat players- were constantly accompanied in their agonistic performances in France by an average of 8000 supporters. It's consequently easy to understand what holy fire has stimulated Blazevic's players, trainer-strategist able to phone his Republic President Tudjiman in the stand, during a match's break, to ask if he liked tactics.
Warmth and sacrifices of a nation that has lived his football fable and wants to learn to fly to new enterprises. The previous statements don't lack, if it's true that Croat champions, even searching for the glory in foreign countries( waiting for a League to reorganise), are ready for swearing fidelity to white-red-chess shirt.
The long and suffered run of Croatia to freedom has even passed through a referendum on May 1991, when most of people voted the independence, proclaiming Zagabria as capital cities.
One of the first countries that recognised the new State was the Federal German Republic, chaired by the present Chancellor Kohl, the main promoter of the recongnisement, of which he's repented, speaking about sport, after having personally watched at the defeat of his compatriots against the Slav team.

Leadership Medica^®

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