Ismet Godinjak
| Ismet Godinjak | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Born | 17 March 1973 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia | ||
| Volleyball information | |||
| Current club | OKI Fantomi | ||
| National team | |||
| |||
Honours | |||
Ismet Godinjak (born 17 March 1973) is a Bosnian sitting volleyball player. A member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national sitting volleyball team, he won medals at the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024 Summer Paralympics.
Biography
Godinjak was born on 17 March 1973 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.[1] He grew up playing volleyball, and after the Bosnian War, began competing in sitting volleyball as part of his rehabilitation.[1] He was selected for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national sitting volleyball team and debuted for them at the 1995 European Championships in Ljubljana.[1] He has been one of the main players for the team since, having competed for the team in 148 matches by 2019, a record he jointly-held with Dževad Hamzić, Sabahudin Delalić, and Adnan Manko.[2]
Godinjak helped the Bosnian sitting volleyball team to a bronze medal at the European Championships in 1997, which was followed by a gold medal in 1999 and further titles in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2015.[1][3][4] After a bronze in 2017, and a silver in 2019, Godinjak helped Bosnia win another title in 2021 and their 11th European Championship in 2023.[1][5] He also has competed for Bosnia many times at the World Para Volleyball Championship, helping them win bronze in 1998, gold in 2002, 2006, and 2014, and silver in 2010, 2018, and 2022.[1][3][4]
Godinjak has competed for Bosnia at every Summer Paralympics since 2000, contributing to their gold medals in 2004 and 2012, silver medals in 2000, 2008, 2016, and 2024, and a bronze medal in 2020.[1] From 2000 to 2016, Bosnia reached the finals at every Paralympics, and Godinjak is one of five Bosnians – along with Manko, Hamzić, Delalić, and Asim Medić – to have won seven career Paralympic medals.[1][6]
On a club level, Godinjak competes for OKI Fantomi, which he co-founded and serves as president for.[1] His club is among the most successful in Bosnia, having won a number of national championships and their seventh-consecutive European Championship in 2024.[7] Godinjak was named the male disabled athlete of the year in Bosnia in 2007 and 2011.[8][9] He was given the Recognition Award from World ParaVolley in 2020, given for "the recipient's significant contribution towards and development of sitting volleyball."[1] He was named the Best Male Libero at the 2021 and 2023 European Championships, and in 2024, he was honored by the Ministry of Civil Affairs with the title of Top Athlete of the International Class of Bosnia and Herzegovina.[1][10]
Godinjak has two sons.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Godinjak Ismet". Olympics.com – via archive.today.
- ^ "Final Team Registration Form" (PDF). EuroSittingVolley.com. July 2019 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ a b "REPREZENTACIJA BiH OSVOJILA ZLATNU MEDALJU U SJEDEÆOJ ODBOJCI" [THE REPRESENTATION OF BIH WON THE GOLD MEDAL IN SITTING VOLLEYBALL]. Bošnjaci.net. 26 September 2004.
- ^ a b Ng, Kwok (26 September 2016). "Major Competitions". sittingvolleyball.omeka.net. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
- ^ "Godinjak: Nakon Pariza značajnija rekonstrukcija reprezentacije" [Godinjak: After Paris, a more significant reconstruction of the national team]. Federalna.ba (in Croatian). 23 October 2023.
- ^ "Paris 2024 Paralympic Games". World ParaVolley.
- ^ "Sjedeća odbojka: OKI Fantomi se revanširali Spidu i osvojili titulu prvaka Evrope!" [Sitting volleyball: OKI Phantoms took revenge on Speed and won the title of European champion!]. TuzlaLive.ba (in Serbian). 28 April 2024.
- ^ "Laureati Godinjak i Mujićeva" [Laureates Godinjak and Mujić]. Nezavisne novine (in Bosnian). 18 January 2008.
- ^ "Ismet Godinjak i Nina Zahirović bh. sportisti - invalidi godine" [Ismet Godinjak and Nina Zahirović, BiH athletes - disabled people of the year]. Klix.ba (in Serbian). 16 January 2012.
- ^ "Odluka o dodjeli zvanja zaslužnog sportiste Bosne i Hercegovine i vrhunskog sportiste međunarodnog razreda za 2024. godinu" [Decision on awarding the title of Meritorious Athlete of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Top Athlete of the International Class for the year 2024] (in Bosnian). Ministry of Civil Affairs. 16 January 2025.
