Croatia advances at the XVIII Women's World Handball Championships

With the legendary Ivano Balic casting such a large shadow, Josip Sojat and his girls are struggling to carve out a niche of their own. Although it was hoped the 2003 World Championship would represent a boost for the Croatian women’s game, it did nothing to change the status quo, and the national side has yet to earn a top-three finish in a major tournament. That said, their entertaining, inspired and at times flamboyant style, allied to the hard-edged experience of Sojat’s side, has brought some bright spots. For buccaneering talisman Bozika Palcic and key performer Svitlana Pasicnik of Koprivnica, however, that is not enough. As far as they are concerned, it is time to break free at last.