Nikola Karabatić

Nikola Karabatić

Karabatić in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Nikola Karabatić
Born	(1984-04-11) April 11, 1984 Niš, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Weight	102 kilograms (225 lb)
Playing position	Central back
Club information
Current club	FC Barcelona
Number	33
Senior clubs
2000-2005 2005-2009 2009-2013 2013 2013-	Montpellier HB THW Kiel Montpellier HB Pays d'Aix FC Barcelona
National team
2000-	France		213 (882)[1]
Medal record Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing Team Gold 2012 London Team World Championship Gold 2009 Croatia Team Gold 2011 Sweden Team Bronze 2003 Portugal Team Bronze 2005 Tunisia Team European Championship Gold 2006 Switzerland Team Gold 2010 Austria Team Gold 2014 Denmark Team Bronze 2008 Norway Team

Nikola Karabatić (born 11 April 1984) is a French handball player. With the French national handball team, he won two gold medals in Summer Olympics (2008 and 2012), two gold medals in World Championship (2009 and 2011) and also three gold medals in European Championship (2006, 2010 and 2014). In 2011, he won L'Équipe Champion of Champions.

French national team

He is World Champion, Olympic and European Champion. He is European Champion from 2006, and received a bronze medal in 2008. He has received two bronze medals at the World Championships, in 2003 and 2005. At the 2007 World Men's Handball Championship he was voted into the All-Star Team, when France finished fourth. He was also voted into the All Star Team at the 2004 European Men's Handball Championship.

Club player

Karabatić began his professional carrier in French top club Montpellier HB. There, he became French champion in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and also won the Champions League in 2003. He then played for the German club THW Kiel, becoming German champions in 2006, 2007 and 2008, and winning the EHF Champions League in 2007. The summer 2009 he left Germany and came back to Montpellier HB, winning three other French champion title in 2010, 2011 and 2012. After a quick stay in Pays d'Aix Université Club handball (Aix-en-Provence) between February and June 2013, he currently plays for FC Barcelona.

Personal

Nikola was born on April 11, 1984 in Niš, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia, to a Croatian father and Serbian mother. Nikola's father Branko Karabatić is originally from Vrsine, a village between Trogir and Marina (maritime Croatia), and was also a professional handball player.^[2][3][4] In his career, Branko played for the Železničar handball team from Niš, which is where he met his wife Radmila who is from Aleksinac, Serbia.^[5] The family moved to France when Nikola was 3 and a half years old after Branko got a coaching job there. Nikola has a younger brother Luka, born on 19 April 1988.^[3]

He speaks Serbian/Croatian at home with his parents,^[6] French and English.

References

External links

• Nikola Karabatić's Official website

v t e France squad – 2012 European Championship – 11th place 2 Fernandez 3 Dinart 4 Barachet 5 G. Gille 6 B. Gille 8 Narcisse 9 Joli 11 Honrubia 12 Karaboué 13 Karabatić 16 Omeyer 18 Accambray 19 Abalo 20 Sorhaindo 21 Guigou 25 Detrez 27 Bingo Head Coach: Onesta

v t e France squad – 2012 Summer Olympics – Gold medal 2 Fernandez 3 Dinart 4 Barachet 5 G. Gille 6 B. Gille 8 Narcisse 9 Joli 11 Honrubia 12 Karaboué 13 Karabatić 16 Omeyer 18 Accambray 19 Abalo 20 Sorhaindo 21 Guigou Head Coach: Onesta

v t e France squad – 2014 Eurpean Championship – Gold medal 1 Dumoulin 2 Fernandez 7 Anić 8 Narcisse 9 Joli 10 Nyokas 11 Honrubia 12 Gérard 13 N. Karabatić 15 Grébille 16 Omeyer 18 Accambray 19 Abalo 20 Sorhaindo 21 Guigou 22 L. Karabatić 28 Porte Coach: Onesta

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