{"id":944312,"date":"2026-03-21T18:26:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T17:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/?p=944312"},"modified":"2026-03-21T17:51:41","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T16:51:41","slug":"od-ljubavi-prema-igri-do-velikih-takmicenja-i-trofeja-elena-vec-donosi-prevagu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/sport\/od-ljubavi-prema-igri-do-velikih-takmicenja-i-trofeja-elena-vec-donosi-prevagu\/","title":{"rendered":"From love of the game, to big competitions and trophies \u2013 Elena is already bringing the upper hand"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two moments have decisively shaped the career of Jovanovi\u0107, a receiver for Buducnost, a member of the Montenegrin cadet national team, and a scholarship holder of the Volleyball Federation of Montenegro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She has only just turned 16, and she already has moments behind her that many dream of: last summer she was part of the U16 national team at the European Championship, the first of our women's teams to qualify for a major competition through the qualifiers, and last week she won her first senior trophy \u2013 the Montenegrin Cup. It was fitting that this would also be the first Cup trophy in her club's history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In both cases, her role was not secondary, on the contrary - from her first dreams and love for volleyball, through the historic placement at the European Championship and winning the Montenegrin Cup, to new challenges and ambitions, Elena is already pushing the boundaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy career so far is filled with beautiful memories from major competitions and matches I played with the club and national team. I would especially like to highlight last year, when we qualified for the European Championship for the first time in the history of women's volleyball. That is my greatest achievement so far and an experience that I will certainly remember for a long time.<\/strong>\", Elena Jovanovi\u0107 began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, it didn't take her long to become part of the serious club story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWinning the Montenegrin Cup with the club has a special meaning, because it is the result of working together throughout the season. In the final, we showed character, because we came back after losing two sets and managed to turn the game around. That feeling was incredible and showed us how much we can do as a team.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elena was ready for the opportunity \u2013 her points were the advantage in the final against Herceg Novi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am always ready to play and give my best whenever I get the chance. My coach often shows me confidence, which means a lot to me. My older teammates help me a lot on the court, cheer me on and make it easier for me to fit in, so I feel safe and prepared in such situations.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it all actually started out of pure love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, volleyball has been my first love from the beginning. When I started training, I dreamed of playing in big competitions one day. As I grew up, that desire grew stronger and today it still motivates me the most.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Developing in the right environment makes a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe atmosphere in the club is great! We have excellent conditions for team and individual progress and great support from the coach, which further motivates us to give our best on the field. We, the younger players, stick together, we are always there for each other and I think that is our great strength. It means a lot to us that we got the opportunity to play at the senior level, because that way we gain great experience, progress from game to game, learn and grow<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New challenges are just around the corner: Elena is part of the U18 national team that will play the second round of European Championship qualifiers in Maribor next week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Photo: OSCG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have a strong group waiting for us, but we believe in our chances of advancing. The atmosphere in the team is great, we are all motivated and focused. Like last year, we have a huge desire and we will give our maximum.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ambitions are clear \u2013 another step forward: qualifying for the European Championship in another representative category would be a phenomenal achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt would mean a lot to us to win the European Championship again this year, because playing for the national team is a special feeling for me and always an additional motivation. Of course, that would be another great success and a nice follow-up to the last European Championship and winning the Cup.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And in the club \u2013 the focus is on the top. After the national team obligations, the playoffs follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe believe we can do a lot and we want to continue our winning streak. Luka Bar and Herceg Novi are experienced and strong teams, but we have energy, talent and a strong team spirit. We have shown that we can play big games, and if we are at our level, we can fight for the double crown.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, back to the beginning \u2013 to the love of the game. That is Elena's starting point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVolleyball is much more than a sport for me \u2013 I feel the best when I'm on the court. Every training session and every match is an opportunity to improve, and my goal is to discover what level I can reach with dedicated work and effort. I love following the best volleyball players in the world, especially those who play in my position.<\/strong>\u201c.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is part of the great volleyball boom in Montenegro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMore and more girls are choosing this sport in our country, and I think the Federation plays a big role in that, promoting our successes and organizing competitions for all younger categories. Volleyball is a team sport, and I think that it is precisely this energy and togetherness that attracts and keeps many people in this sport.<\/strong>\u201e.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On the wave of the great volleyball boom in Montenegro, Elena Jovanovi\u0107 also arrived: a cadet national team member, a serve receiver whose role in winning the Cup with the Buducnost team was perhaps crucial.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":944314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[28570,776],"naslovna":[],"class_list":["post-944312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport","tag-elena-jovanovic","tag-odbojka"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=944312"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":944315,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944312\/revisions\/944315"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/944314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=944312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=944312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=944312"},{"taxonomy":"naslovna","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gradski.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naslovna?post=944312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}