Primorac with signatures: ‘The elections are over today’. Varvodić: ‘No, they are not. A harsh reality awaits you’

– As of today, the elections are over – said Primorac.

Boško Čavka, a long-time coach of the national team in weightlifting, and today the president of the Croatian Weightlifting Association, is in Primorč’s team.

– I call on Varvodi to admit defeat and give up his candidacy. These 59 signatures mean more than 90 votes in the assembly, which has 155 votes – said Avka.

Although 108 individuals vote at the assembly, the representatives of 47 Olympic sports have two votes each, i.e. a total of 94 votes out of 155. All others have one vote each: representatives of non-Olympic sports (33), regional federations (21) and seven individual votes per function. A majority requires 78 votes. Voting is secret.

Primorac did not share the signature list of those who supported him with the journalists, but handed it over to the committee of the Croatian Olympic Committee. He says that he did it for two reasons: to stop speculation about who has the majority and to avoid a split and difficult words in the campaign. He was also struck by the fact that Varvodić last week, in an interview for 24sata, he commented that Primorac cannot have 59 signatures.

– There is only one truth and with the submitted signatures, the confusion of the members that both candidates have majority support will stop. As a scientist, I have the motive to speak only the truth and to do good. In addition, I submitted these signatures earlier because I want unity and synergy in sports, to turn to the future. My door is open to everyone, regardless of how they voted at the assembly – said Primorac.

And while some representatives of the alliance publicly said that the general secretary of the HOO Siniša Kraja was lobbying for Primorac and pressuring them for support, Primorac rejected such claims. And Ccaron;avka said that the other side is applying pressure.

– There was terrible pressure on the federations, and some athletes did not remain firm in their views because of that. The other side started to play ‘sporko’, but now it is clear who has the majority – said Čavka.

Josip Varvodi’s headquarters reacted to this by saying that today he received the support of representatives of the Olympians Club, in which the names of Croatian sports are celebrated. They also sent Varvodi’s written statement in which he said that the support of the Olympians is not only a matter of numbers but also of credibility. Varvodić he pointed out that the signatures are not votes, but that the new president will be elected on July 29 by secret ballot. He called Primor&ccaron’s demonstration of signatures “form in the absence of content” and said that these signatures were the result of “pressure and blackmail”. And he said that he would not participate in that, but wanted to campaign with the presentation of a program that brings concrete changes. He called on the members of the assembly to make a decision without pressure.

– Primorac will have to face the harsh reality when he realizes on election day that a large number of signatures remained just that, a signature that did not turn into a vote – claims Varvodi.

– On the one hand, we have an approach that boils down to presentation and perception. On the other side stands a man from sports, with clear experience and the intention to introduce order, transparency and responsibility into a system that has been waiting for it for too long. The support I receive from Olympians, sports workers and federations is not the result of a campaign, but of trust. And trust is not built in a few days or in front of cameras, but over years of work and clear attitudes – said Varvodi.