Bosnia's women rugby pioneers target Olympic qualification
ZENICA, Bosnia, June 6 (Reuters) - Erna Huseinovic fell in love with rugby after coaching young children at a local club in the central town of Zenica, the home of Bosnia's first women's rugby sevens team.
A speedy winger, Huseinovic is preparing with her teammates for their first international competition in Croatia in September.
"I found in rugby something that I did not find in other sports," said Huseinovic, a 25-year-old student at the Zenica faculty for sports.
"The goal of my team is to achieve success in regional competitions and qualify for the 2032 Olympic Games," she said.
Rugby has been played for 50 years in Zenica, and Celik, regular winners of rugby championships in the former Yugoslavia, established the first women's team last year after a previous attempt had failed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Our goal is to form women's teams in several cities across Bosnia so they can compete in domestic and international competitions," said Mirza Oruc, a vice-president of Bosnia's rugby association and coach of the national women's team.
"We want to compete in rugby sevens and qualify for the Brisbane Olympic Games," Oruc told Reuters, adding that sevens was a version of rugby helping to break stereotypes about the tough sport being exclusively for men.
Sara Hadzic, 25, heard about rugby at Zenica university, where she studies German language and literature.
"I wanted to try something new and different, to meet new girlfriends," said Hadzic, who did karate as a child. "I am playing now recreationally but I might go professional in the future."
The mothers of several children training at the Celik club decided to try out the sports themselves.
"Rugby is love, friendship, socializing, family," said Brankica Sekerovic. "I have come to the club as a supporter during tournaments and met some wonderful mums ... and then came a love for rugby."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
32 minutes ago
- Telegraph
English rugby must follow feisty Ellis Genge's lead to see off rebel league
To think that there are those who wish to rip up the club rugby blueprint and toss it into a smouldering inferno. All that can be said with certainty – in the middle of one of the edgiest and engrossing Premiership semi-finals in memory – is that none of rugby's self-proclaimed disruptors could have been present at the Rec on Friday night. Because Bath's second-half demolition of their arch-rivals Bristol was everything that confected, artificial sport – the kind which is bought by money and not emotion – is not: it was frenetic, parochial and, at times, down right anarchic. It was everything that sport should be. West Country rivals, knockout sport, with home-grown heroes and villains, in front of a packed house, with fans putting that very word into 'fanatical'. At times, some of the crowd's celebrating, even for something as mundane, bordered on maniacal. This was heritage, tradition – atavism, even – and pride writ large in as memorable and poignant an advert for Premiership rugby as there has been this season. But, most importantly, it was real – and people cared. It meant something – to two of England's most regal rugby cities. And, if sport gets to a stage where people do not care, then what is the point? One would think that the organisers of R360, rugby's latest breakaway attempt, might understand that, given that one of the protagonists, Mike Tindall, wore the Blue, Black and White on over 100 occasions. R360 just cannot claim to be able to replicate what took place in Bath on Friday night and, even if they were to make such an outlandish claim, why would anyone want to leave it? Is the draw so alluring that these Bath men would sacrifice nights like Friday in favour of contrived teams playing in contrived causes? No amount of money could replace the Rec roar which engulfed Joe Cokanasiga after scoring the decisive second-half try; or the chorus of 'Come on You Bath', all in unison, which followed. Bath Rugby was founded in 1865 – and on Friday night it felt as though the crowd had over 150 years of history behind them. It must be noted that Ellis Genge played his part, too. The great Bristolian was in fine form, admittedly in a losing cause, in both tight and loose, but it was the looseness of his lips that was most striking. The game had not even begun when the loosehead entered into some verbals with the Bath crowd; then came some on-field verbals for which he was penalised but thereafter he was immense in both pantomime villain and all-court forward. 🎙️ "This is what we need isn't it?" Ellis Genge has a word with the home fans at The Rec as the two teams make their way onto the field for a hotly contested derby. 💥🍿💥🍿 Watch live on TNT Sports & Discovery+ — Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) June 6, 2025 With characters like Genge – as long as there are more coming through, like Henry Pollock, who are willing to embrace the niggle and rage against the machine, then the Premiership is in good hands. Even Finn Russell got in on the act at the end, and it looked as though he and Bristol centre James Williams might come to blows as the Lions fly-half left the field with four minutes to play. The league undoubtedly has its issues. There are too many stale matches, too many dead-rubbers, with not enough spice. Some clubs struggle to regularly fill their stadiums and others are in dire need of investment. But, on Friday night, the woes of 2022/23, the season in which three sides went to the wall, felt as though it had been consigned to history. The match provided the most judicious reminder, too, that tries in this sport do not always equal entertainment. Bath opened the Bristol floodgates in the second half but by then the fixture was already a game-of-the-season contender, and only once had the whitewash been breached. The first-half score, by James Dun, was a sweet one; but a sole one it was. The doom-mongers will gleefully highlight that Friday night was just one game among so many in a season, and one swallow does not a summer make, but here was a glimpse of the Premiership's potential: at times brutal, at times beautiful, always meaningful. It might not be there yet, but if this is to be its ceiling, then it is a high one. With all the talk of breakaways and disruption, the future is bright. Perhaps a rethink – an R180, if you will – is needed.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Bath's second-half revival carries them past Bristol and into Premiership final
Bath's oval-ball custodians have spent years trying – and failing – to construct a team to match the striking nature of their home city. Now, finally, they are within 80 minutes of claiming their first domestic league title since 1995-96 after a storming second-half revival put paid to a gallant Bristol side who had led by seven points at half-time. If the outcome was still theoretically up in the air at the interval there was not a shred of doubt by the hour mark, Bath launching a blistering fusillade that yielded four converted tries without reply and underlined their status as short-priced favourites to lift the Premiership trophy at Twickenham next Saturday. The final margin was slightly harsh on a Bears team who played a full part in a stonking contest that, once again, ticked pretty much every box from an entertainment perspective. Bristol were thrilling to watch in the first half but never quite managed to build the kind of scoreboard pressure that might have caused a famous upset, eventually disappearing beneath a quartet of third-quarter tries from Ted Hill, Joe Cokanasiga, Will Muir and Max Ojomoh, all converted by a nerveless Finn Russell. It was always destined to be a passion-filled evening on the banks of the River Avon and a fast and furious game matched the febrile atmosphere. Bristol had won 11 of the last 14 matches between the clubs and their director of rugby, Pat Lam, had made a few pointed remarks about Bath's more expensively-assembled squad. He also revealed he had advised his wife not to attend because of the probability of being soaked if she sat out with the travelling Bears' fans in the famously exposed – not to mention pricey – open stand at the Rec. Never trust a long-range West Country weather forecast. As it turned out the rain held off and conditions were perfect. Particularly so for the visitors, whose game is better suited to a dry ball. On this type of occasion, against the side who topped the regular season table by 11 points, they needed every little bonus they could find. And despite an initial surge of Bath forward pressure it was the Bears who enjoyed the lion's share of the early points. AJ MacGinty slotted the game's first points after Guy Pepper was slightly too enthusiastic at the breakdown and a shaken Bath found themselves 10 points down when a spectacular long-range counterattack launched by Kalaveti Ravouvou and some deft forward interplay ended with the second row James Dun galloping over by the posts. Dun's father Andy was once a Bristol stalwart and the whole crackling occasion felt deeply personal, with more than bragging rights at stake. It was definitely not helpful to the Bears' cause, then, when Ravouvou was shown a yellow card for trying to stop Bath taking a quick tap and cost his side a further three points in the process. Even with 14 men, though, Bristol kept on coming. Bath's defence were pulled this way and that, the point of attack constantly shifting. Only a desperate rearguard action prevented the Bears from scoring another belting multi-phase try and a botched lineout drill five metres out then allowed Bath to escape again. When Bristol do flick the turbo switch they look irresistible but games of top-level rugby are not definitively settled inside the first 40 minutes, particularly at this venue. Bath's strength in depth has frequently been their trump card this season so it was doubly worrying for the Bears when the effervescent Harry Randall was led groggily away to the changing rooms and replaced by Kieran Marmion. Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion A penalty just before the interval from MacGinty, though, extended Bristol's advantage to 13-6 and caused a slight hush to fall around the ground. Losing in the final is one thing but going down at home to Bristol in a massive semi-final? The onus was on Bath's familiar matchwinners to come up with the antidote to the onrushing grizzly Bears for whom Viliame Mata, Steven Luatua and Bernhard Janse van Rensburg were all exerting their usual influence. And, sure enough, in the first 19 minutes after the restart four servings of much-needed relief duly materialised. First the visitors messed up the restart, conceded a soft penalty and gave Bath the platform from which to launch a purposeful attack which ended with Hill scoring in the left corner. Russell's wide-angled conversion was a further bonus and there was even better to come, a horrible bounce eluding Ravouvou and allowing Cokanasiga to strike. Now the tide was turning and some tight refereeing calls were also going Bath's way. A pass by Noah Heward was adjudged fractionally forward and, once again, the home side were instantly energised. Muir crashed over in the left corner to extend the lead further and, within five minutes with Bristol again down to 14 players, Ojomoh inflicted further damage. Even when sorely tested this stacked Bath squad tend to come up with a resounding answer.
BBC News
3 hours ago
- BBC News
Premiership semi-final: Bristol lead at West Country rivals Bath
Update: Date: 13 mins Title: Penalty Content: Bath 0-3 Bristol Bristol strike first as they work the ball in from the right after a break from Noah Heward and win a penalty infront of the posts which is meat and drink for AJ MacGinty. Update: Date: 11 mins Title: Post Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol First glimpse of Bath's ability with ball in hand as the ball is worked wide right to Tom de Glanville, but he runs out of space and his hopeful chip forward is straight to AJ MacGinty who calls a mark and relieves the pressure. Update: Date: 10 mins Title: Post Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol It's already apparent that Bath do not want to allow their visitors to build up a head of steam and start working the ball around... they have taken a couple of opportunities to launch the ball into touch in midfield to reset and regroup already, the latest from Tom de Glanville. Update: Date: 7 mins Title: Post Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol Ellis Genge is a proud Bristol boy and you can see how much this means to him in his 60th appearance for the Bears. He is in the middle of everything but he also needs to keep a lid on his emotions. He's up against his potential Lions team-mate Will Stuart in the scrum tonight, with double World Cup winner Thomas du Toit on the bench for Bath. Update: Date: 19:53 BST Title: 'Really poor play from Bristol' Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol Gareth ChilcottEx-England and Bath prop on BBC Radio Bristol That is the worst possible start for Bristol. Completely out of order. Maybe it's the nerves but it was really poor play. It's silly to give away a reversal penalty in a really tight game early on. They're on the rack now. Update: Date: 5 mins Title: Post Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol Wave after wave of pressure from Bath within five metres of the Bears line, but the visitors' defence stands firm, for now... Ellis Genge is in the middle of everything and manages to hold the ball up as the hosts try to get over the line and the Bears are able to clear their lines and catch their breath. Update: Date: 3 mins Title: Post Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol Full-blooded start as Bath kicked into touch on halfway from their own 22, Bristol win the lineout and secure a penalty in midfield but now the heated Ellis Genge has talked his way into trouble with ref Christophe Ridley awarding the hosts a penalty allowing the hosts to kick towards the Bristol 22. Update: Date: 1 min Title: Kick-off Content: Bath 0-0 Bristol Away we go... the Bears get us under way, playing in white and black tonight, whereas Bath are in their familiar black, blue and white. Twickenham awaits for one of these sides... Update: Date: 19:44 BST Title: Post Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Right, up to speed? Good... the players are on the field at the Rec, packed to the rafters, and kick-off is moments away. We've had fireworks off the pitch, let's start them on it. Update: Date: 19:44 BST Title: 'There will be lot of nerves tonight' Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Gareth ChilcottEx-England and Bath prop on BBC Radio Bristol It's a massive game for both clubs and it's a game of contrasts. We have a brilliant game in store for us. There'll be lot of nerves tonight. Update: Date: 19:43 BST Title: Three changes for Bears Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) England prop Ellis Genge returns to the Bristol starting line-up having missed last weekend's victory over Harlequins through injury. Genge is one of three changes to Pat Lam's pack with lock James Dun and flanker Steven Luatua also back - Yann Thomas, Pedro Rubiolo and Santiago Grondona drop out - while the backline remains unchanged. Bristol boss Lam confirmed on Wednesday that Lions selection Genge and Dun had overcome knocks picked up in training while Luatua is preferred to Argentine international Grondona, who scored twice in Bristol's victory at Bath earlier this season, at blind-side. Lock Joe Batley, selected in the Premiership Team of the Season, joins Dun in the second row with Fitz Harding leading the team from open-side. The experienced AJ MacGinty starts at fly-half alongside scrum-half Harry Randall while South African Bernhard Janse van Rensburg and James Williams are the centre pairing. Wing Gabriel Ibitoye, the Premiership's joint top try-scorer this season with 13, is joined by Fijian flyer Kalaveti Ravouvou and Noah Heward in the back three. Bristol: Heward; Ravouvou, Van Rensburg, Williams, Ibitoye; MacGinty, Randall; Genge, Oghre, Kloska, Dun, Batley, Luatua, Harding (c), Mata. Replacements: Thacker, Woolmore, Lahiff, Rubiolo, Grondola, Marmion, Byrne, Bates. Update: Date: 19:42 BST Title: All change for Bath Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Bath boss Johann van Graan unsurprisingly names an entirely different XV to the second-string team that started the 36-26 defeat at Saracens last Saturday. Guy Pepper starts at open-side flanker in place of the suspended Sam Underhill while Ted Hill makes his 50th appearance for the club at blind-side and Alfie Barbeary completes the back row at number eight with Miles Reid on the bench. Springboks prop Thomas Du Toit, named in the Premiership Team of the Season, starts on the bench for Bath with director of rugby Johann van Graan opting for England and British and Irish Lions selection Will Stuart (pictured) at tight-head. Captain Ben Spencer and Finn Russell are restored at half-back while Max Ojomoh partners Scotland international Cameron Redpath at centre and Will Muir, Joe Cokanasiga and Tom De Glanville make up the back three. Another Team of the Season pick, hooker Tom Dunn, and Beno Obano join Stuart in the front row with the established duo of Quinn Roux and Charlie Ewels making up the second row and flanker Josh Bayliss among six forwards on the bench. Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Ojomoh, Redpath, Muir; Russell, Spencer (c); Obano, Dunn, Stuart, Roux, Ewels, Hill, Pepper, Barbeary. Replacements: Annett, van Wyk, Du Toit, Molony, Reid, Carr-Smith, Donoghue, Bayliss. Update: Date: 19:40 BST Title: 'Bristol won't fear the task' Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Sophie HurcomBBC Sport at The Rec As soon as Bristol's fourth place in the Premiership was confirmed last Saturday, director of rugby Pat Lam was speaking about the Bears' record against their neighbours Bath. Lam and Bristol will be under no illusions about the challenge they face against Bath this evening, but they definitely won't fear the task in front of them. Since Johann van Graan took over Bath in July 2022, Bristol have beaten them five out of six times they have met in the Premiership – including the double this season. That being said, Gloucester boss George Skivington said in April that beating Bath at the Rec was one of the 'biggest challenges' in European rugby at the moment. If Bristol can win tonight and book that place in the Twickenham final, it will surely go down as one of their greatest victories. Update: Date: 19:38 BST Title: Ewels wary of Bears threat Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Bath lock Charlie Ewels is wary of the threat of Bristol, having lost twice to their west country rivals in the regular season. Bristol prevailed 36-26 at the Rec in October before running-out 36-14 winners at the Principality Stadium last month. "They're a very good team, that's what I've taken from those matches, he said. "Obviously there's an extra level as it's a derby around the fans. "We've played them a few times this season - in the cup, twice in the league. At Cardiff we played different teams against them. "They will be very well prepped, we'll be very well prepped and we'll be really looking forward to it." Ewels has emphasised his side's need to "trust the process", a similar mantra coined by his coach last month, in order for Bath to go one step further and win the Premiership on 14 June to complete an historic treble. Update: Date: 19:36 BST Title: 'Dream game' for Bears boss Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Bristol Bears' Premiership semi-final against Bath has been described as a "dream game" by director of rugby Pat Lam. Lam's side go into tonight's match as underdogs having finished the season fourth, 14 points behind their local rivals in the regular season standings. However, a league double over Bath this season backs up Lam's notion that his side "know how to beat Bath" - a defiant claim made following his side's 52-26 victory against Harlequins which confirmed Bears' play-off spot. "We're proud of that record, but it's the next one that counts," Lam told BBC Radio Bristol. "We've never played a derby game as a semi-final and for us we've never been in a final. It is the dream game really. "There's so much interest in it. We've already picked that up from both sets of supporters. There's good banter going back and forth. "Our goal was never to just get in the top four though; this is just the first stage," Lam added. Update: Date: 19:34 BST Title: Bath boss urges side to keep discipline Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Bath director of rugby Johann van Graan has urged his side to keep their discipline in their Premiership semi-final against Bristol on Friday. Van Graan's side finished the regular season with 72 points, 11 points clear at the top of the Premiership standings, and 14 clear of fourth-placed Bristol. But the South African is wary of the threat Bath's local rivals pose, having lost twice to the Bears in the league this season already. "This is our third semi-final we've played this season and I'll just say the usual - make sure you're disciplined, stick to what you do and make sure you perform on the day," Van Graan told BBC Radio Bristol. It has been a historic season in many ways already for Bath, having already completed a cup double by winning the Premiership Rugby Cup and European Challenge Cup - ending a drought of 17 years without a trophy. Update: Date: 19:32 BST Title: Play-off coaches on season finale Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Chris JonesBBC rugby union correspondent English rugby's top coaches say they are determined to revel in the pressure of leading their sides into do-or-die Premiership semi-finals this weekend. "If you can't love this, then get another job," says Bath's Johann van Graan. After 18 rounds of the regular campaign, two sides will emerge from this weekend to reach the final on 14 June at a sold-out Twickenham, with Leicester hosting Sale on Saturday. In a special Rugby Union Weekly podcast, we were joined exclusively by all four of the men plotting to lead their team to Premiership glory, just days before the biggest game of their season. Pat Lam of Bristol said: "I use that word 'privilege'. When you look at the Champions League final, PSG winning 5-0, that is a team that decided to go out and enjoy themselves. "Every time I have these moments I feel just privileged to be here and feel lucky to be doing what we do." Van Graan added: "This game is not about fear. This game is about attacking it - and may the best team win. "What would the world be without sport? I'm privileged to be part of it and part of a team that wants to achieve. "And if we want to get to the next stage, we've got to get past a very good team on Friday night." Update: Date: 19:30 BST Title: Who will survive Western shootout? Content: Bath v Bristol (19:45 BST) Welcome to your weekend... boy, do we have a treat in store for you under the Friday night lights! It's the business end of the Premiership season and tonight will see the first semi-final as table-topping Bath welcome a dangerous Bristol Bears side to the Rec. A place in the Twickenham final next weekend is at stake, with Leicester and Sale set to face off on Saturday to decide who will face tonight's winners. The Rec is a perfect setting for this showdown between two free-scoring sides on what might eventually end up being a wet and windy night in the wild west. Kick-off is 15 minutes away so let's quickly bring you up to speed...
