Ratko Rudić facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ratko Rudić
Rudić in 2012
Personal information
Born	7 June 1948 (1948-06-07) (age 77) Belgrade, PR Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia
Nationality	Croatia / Yugoslavia
Height	188 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	87 kg (192 lb)
National team
Years	Team
1968–1980	Yugoslavia
Medal record Olympic Games Silver 1980 Moscow World Championship Bronze 1973 Belgrade European Championship Silver 1977 Jönköping Bronze 1970 Barcelona Bronze 1974 Vienna
Last updated: 7 May 2020

Ratko Rudić (born June 7, 1948) is a famous Croatian water polo coach and former player. He is known as one of the most successful water polo coaches ever. He won an amazing 38 medals as a coach at big events.

Rudić led three different national teams to win four gold medals at the Summer Olympics. He also won three gold medals at the World Championships. In 2007, he was added to the International Swimming Hall of Fame. People there called him "one of the best, if not the best, water polo coach."

He received many important awards for his work. These include the AVNOJ award in Yugoslavia and the Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport in Croatia. He also received the Order of Duke Branimir in Croatia. In 2020, Rudić announced he was retiring from water polo.

Early Life and Start in Water Polo

Ratko Rudić was born on June 7, 1948, in Belgrade, which was then part of Yugoslavia. His father was a military officer, so Ratko lived in different cities as a child. He spent time in Belgrade, Rijeka, Zadar, Split, and Zagreb.

He started playing water polo in 1958 when he was just 10 years old. He played for a club called Jedinstvo in Zadar. By 1963, at 15, he played his first professional game for VK Jadran Split. Even though he loved to paint and wanted to study art, he ended up studying physical education. He lived in Belgrade for many years, then in Rome, and later in Los Angeles.

Ratko Rudić has a daughter named Martina. She is a cellist, which means she plays the cello, and lives in Milan.

Playing Career Highlights

Rudić played for the club VK Jadran Split from 1963 to 1971. Then he moved to VK Partizan. He chose Partizan because it offered year-round training, which was important for professional players. With VK Partizan, he won many titles. These included eight Yugoslavian championships and two European Champions League titles in 1974 and 1975.

He played 297 games for the Yugoslavian national water polo team. As a player, he won several medals:

• Gold medals at the 1971 and 1979 Mediterranean Games.
• Silver medal at the 1975 Mediterranean Games.
• Bronze medals at the 1970 and 1974 European Championships.
• Silver medal at the 1977 European Championship.
• Bronze medal at the 1973 World Championship.
• Silver medal at the 1980 Summer Olympics.

At the 1968 Olympics, he was injured and could not play. His team went on to win the gold medal. In 1975, he was wrongly accused of using banned substances. An investigation later proved he was innocent, and his team was cleared.

Coaching Career Highlights

Ratko Rudić
Ratko Rudić in 2010 with Croatia
Club information
Current team	Retired
Teams coached
Years	Team
1984–1988	Yugoslavia
1990–2000	Italy
2001–2004	United States
2005–2012	Croatia
2013–2016	Brazil
2018–2020	Pro Recco
Medal record Olympic Games Gold 1984 Los Angeles Gold 1988 Seoul Gold 1992 Barcelona Gold 2012 London Bronze 1996 Atlanta World Championship Gold 1986 Madrid Gold 1994 Rome Gold 2007 Melbourne Bronze 2009 Rome Bronze 2011 Shanghai FINA World Cup Gold 1987 Thessaloniki Gold 1993 Athens Silver 1995 Atlanta Silver 1999 Sydney Silver 2010 Oradea FINA World League Gold 2012 Almaty Silver 2009 Podgorica Bronze 2003 New York Bronze 2010 Niš Bronze 2011 Florence Bronze 2015 Bergamo European Championship Gold 1993 Sheffield Gold 1995 Vienna Gold 2010 Zagreb Silver 1985 Sofia Silver 1987 Strasbourg Bronze 1999 Florence Pan American Games Gold 2003 Santo Domingo Silver 2015 Toronto
Last updated: 7 May 2020

Ratko Rudić coached five different national teams during his career. These were Yugoslavia, Italy, USA, Croatia, and Brazil. As a coach, he was very organized. He planned training, tested players, and focused on tactics and technique. He was one of the first coaches to work with a team of experts, including psychologists. He also liked to create long-term plans for the teams he coached.

Rudić is the most successful water polo coach in Olympic history. He led three different men's national teams to win four gold medals and one bronze medal at the Summer Olympics. He is also one of the few athletes who won Olympic medals both as a player and as a head coach.

Coaching Yugoslavia

Rudić started coaching junior teams for VK Partizan from 1980 to 1983. Then he coached the Yugoslavian junior national team. They won silver medals at the World and European Championships in 1983 and 1984. Many of these young players later became stars for the senior team. Rudić earned the nickname "Tyrant" because he expected a lot of hard work and discipline from his players.

He coached the Yugoslavia men's national water polo team from 1984 to 1988. During this time, they achieved incredible success:

• Two gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics.
• A gold medal at the 1986 World Championship.
• Two silver medals at the 1985 and 1987 European Championships.
• A gold medal at the 1987 World Cup.

Coaching Italy

After coaching VK Partizan again, Rudić became the coach of Italy in 1990. At first, the Italian players were not used to his very tough training style. But once they accepted his methods, they became the best team in the world. They were the first national team to win all major titles in one Olympic cycle.

In 1994, after winning the gold medal at the 1994 World Championship, Rudić made a big change. He replaced almost the entire team with younger players. Many sports journalists criticized this decision. However, the new team still won a gold medal at the 1995 European Championship.

As the coach of the Italy men's national water polo team, he won:

• A gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics.
• A bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics.
• A gold medal at the 1994 World Championship.
• Gold medals at the 1993 and 1995 European Championships.
• A bronze medal at the 1999 European Championship.
• A gold medal at the 1993 World Cup.
• Silver medals at the 1995 and 1999 World Cups.

Coaching the United States

Rudić moved to the United States in 2001 and coached there until 2004. He found that water polo in the USA was mostly played at the college level. He worked hard to improve the organization of the sport, including youth programs and coach training. He praised the strong work ethic of the American players.

As the coach of the United States men's national water polo team, he won:

• A gold medal at the 2003 Pan American Games.
• A bronze medal at the 2003 World League.

Rudić had a plan called "Project Gold" to prepare the team for the 2008 Olympics. Even though he left in 2004 to coach Croatia, the USA team continued to follow his program. They went on to win a silver medal at the 2008 Olympics.

Coaching Croatia

In late 2004, Rudić accepted an offer to coach the Croatian national team. He found that motivating the team and building unity was very important in Croatia. He also pointed out that water polo did not get as much funding as football, despite the team's great results. The Croatian Olympic Committee recognized him as the most successful Croatian coach in 2007 and 2012.

As the coach of the Croatia men's national water polo team, he won:

• A gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
• A gold medal at the 2007 World Championship.
• Bronze medals at the 2009 and 2011 World Championships.
• A gold medal at the 2010 European Championship.
• A silver medal at the 2010 World Cup.
• A silver medal at the 2009 World League.
• Bronze medals at the 2010 and 2011 World Leagues.
• A gold medal at the 2012 World League.

Coaching Brazil

Rudić became the coach of the Brazil men's national water polo team in November 2013. He helped the team achieve new successes:

• A bronze medal at the 2015 World League.
• A silver medal at the 2015 Pan American Games.

He was even named the best coach by the Olympic Committee of the host country for the 2016 Olympic Games. At those Olympics, Brazil famously beat Serbia 6-5, a team that had been unbeaten for over two years.

Coaching Pro Recco

In June 2018, at 70 years old, Rudić came out of retirement to coach the Italian water polo club Pro Recco. With this club, he won the Serie A1 league title and the Coppa Italia. He also led them to a bronze medal in the 2018–19 LEN Champions League.

On May 6, 2020, Ratko Rudić officially announced his retirement from water polo.

Rudić's Coaching Style

Many people believe that Rudić played a big part in how modern water polo is played today. He built on the strong Yugoslavian system and style. Because of his success, many other coaches tried to use his methods.

Rudić is also famous for his long and very tough training sessions. These sessions could include 8 hours a day of swimming, heavy weightlifting, and lots of leg work. Players also spent time on skill and tactical training. One American player, Layne Beaubien, remembered that in college, a normal daily swim was 3,000 meters. Under Rudić, it started at 5,000 meters and sometimes went up to 18,000 meters! Beaubien said, "it's all mental. That's all it is. That's why he makes us do it. Being able to push yourself when you're so tired, being able to push yourself to the next level." Rudić believed that if a player gave up in practice, they might give up in a game too.

Quotes

The team has to 'feel' that the attention of the entire organizational structure are addressed to them. The work environment is the first motivational factor. The motivation is the decisive factor in the victory of a team.

—Ratko Rudić

Quotes

The team has to 'feel' that the attention of the entire organizational structure are addressed to them. The work environment is the first motivational factor. The motivation is the decisive factor in the victory of a team.

—Ratko Rudić

See also

In Spanish: Ratko Rudić para niños

• List of Olympic champions in men's water polo
• List of Olympic medalists in water polo (men)
• List of world champions in men's water polo
• List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in water polo
• List of members of the International Swimming Hall of Fame