BIOGRAPHY
The influence of Bojana Popovic on women’s handball generally, and particularly in Montenegro, should not be underestimated. During her career as a player, and since retirement, as one of the few women’s head coaches in the sport, she has made a huge impact.
Popovic (née Petrovic) was born in Niš in Yugoslavia and began her handball career there. She moved to Podgorica to join Buducnost in 1998, aged 19, winning four national championships in her time at the club.
In 2002 Popovic moved to Denmark to join Slagelse, coached by Anja Andersen, part of a squad including fellow Montenegrin player and Hall of Fame member Maja Savic. At Slagelse, Popovic won three EHF Champions League titles, three Danish championships, and the EHF Cup. She was also the Champions League top scorer in 2004, 2005, and 2007.
She and several other members of the Slagelse squad then moved to Viborg, where success continued with two more Champions League titles and two more Danish championships.
In 2010, Popovic returned to Montenegro and Buducnost. She was part of an immensely successful team which won the Champions League in 2012 and added Olympic Games silver that summer for Montenegro. Popovic was named Montenegrin Sportsperson of the Year in 2012.
She retired shortly afterwards, apart from a brief period coming out of retirement to play again for Montenegro at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Popovic has stayed in handball - first as sports director and then, after qualifying as a coach, as head coach of the club and now also the Montenegrin women’s national team. She led them to a historic bronze medal at the EHF EURO 2022.
READ MORE
