URNAUT Adolf (SLO) – PVE – International Coach (1990-2012); Development of Sitting Volleyball for Women; Coaching Recruitment, Development and Mentoring; in the field of sport promotion.

URNAUT Adolf – SLO (PVE)

URNAUT

Adi was introduced to sitting volleyball by players Davorin Kragelnik and Vlado Homan, members of the Yugoslavian national team, when they invited him to join their training sessions in 1988, when they were preparing themselves for the Paralympic Games. He found the sport very attractive and wanted to share his volleyball experience with sitting volleyball players and coaches. In 1990 he participated in his first international competition as coach of his sitting volleyball club and led Slovenia in the 1994 World Championships. He participated in an instructor clinic in Rosenberg in the early ’90s and started to work with Rajko Vute, the Chair of the Development department, on various WOVD development events. He was the men’s national team coach from 1992 until 1998 and the women’s national team coach from 1995 until 2012. He has also been the coach of sport club Samorastnik Ravne since 1990.

“There are two people who influenced me most in my involvement in sitting volleyball – Peter Ozmec, the club and Slovenian National Paralympic Association president, organiser of may international events. He influenced my decades-long participation in sitting volleyball at club and national level. We still work together at club level. Rajko Vute, who invited me to work as an instructor at European and world level.”

Event involvement as coach:

1992 Ravne na Koroškem, Slovenia – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 5th place
1993 Järvenpää, Finland – European Championships – national coach (men) – 6th place
1993 Rosendaal, The Netherlands – Eurocup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 6th place
1994 Bottrop, Germany – World Championships – national coach (men) – 7th place
1994 Lappenranta, Finland – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 6th place
1995 Ljubljana, Slovenia – European Championships – national coach (men) – 7th place, (women) – Bronze Medal
1995 Roermond, The Netherlands – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 6th place
1996 Kristiansand, Norway – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 7th place
1997 Tallinn, Estonia – European Championships – national coach (women) – 4th place
1997 Tallinn, Estonia – EuroCup (women) – club coach ISD Samorastnik – Silver Medal
1997 Hajduszoboszlu, Hungary – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 9th place
1998 Osijek, Croatia – EuroCup – club coach ISD Samorastnik – 7th place
1999 Sarajevo, Bosnia i Herzogovina – European Championships – national coach (women) – Gold Medal
1999 Enschede, The Netherlands – EuroCup – coach ISD Samorastnik – 9th place
2000 Maastricht, The Netherlands – World Championships – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2001 Sarospatak, Hungary – European Championships – national coach (women) – Silver Medal
2002 Kamnik, Slovenia – World Championships – national coach (women) – Silver Medal
2002 Riga, Latvia – EuroCup – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2003 Lappeenranta, Finland – European Championships – national coach (women) – Silver Medal
2004 Athens, Greece – Paralympic Games – national coach (women) – 4th place
2005 Leverkusen, Germany – European Championships – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2005 Kamnik, Slovenia – World Youth Championships – national coach (men) – 6th place,
2006 Roermond, The Netherlands – World Championships – national coach (women) -Bronze Medal
2007 Nyiregyhaza, Hungary – European Championships – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2008 Beijing, China – Paralympic Games- National coach (women) – 4th place
2009 Nyiregyhaza, Hungary – European Championships – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2010 Oklahoma, USA – World Championships – national coach (women) – 5th place
2010 Port Said, Egypt – Intercontinental Cup – national coach (women) – Bronze Medal
2011 Rotterdam, Netherlands – European Championships – national coach (women) – 4th place
2012 London, Great Britain – Paralympic Games – assistant coach (women) – 6th place

Summary of role as a coach:

From 1991 until the present: Coach of the sitting volleyball team ISD Samorastnik Ravne, best result 5th place at the 1992 European Club Championships and more than 20 national championship titles.
1993 – 1996 Coach of the men’s national sitting volleyball team, best result 7th place at the 1994 World Championships, 6th place at the 1993 European Championships.
1995 -2011 Coach of the women’s national sitting volleyball team, best result 1st place European Championships 1999, 2nd place World Championships 2002, 3rd place World Championships 2000 and 2006, total of 13 medals at European and World Championships, 2 medals at the Intercontinental Cup, 2 medals at the European Cup

Instructor in development clinics for coaches (1996-2006):

1997 Bosnia i Herzegovina
1997 Poland
2003 Cuba
2005 Serbia
2005 Bulgaria
2006 Brazil

Awards received:

2002 WOVD: Recognition of contribution to development of sitting volleyball and coaching
2006 WOVD: Recognition of the World Organisation for Volleyball of The Disabled (WOVD) for successful coaching and development
2020 World ParaVolley: Recognition Award – for an important contribution to the promotion and development of sitting volleyball as a coach
National Sport Award – Bloudek Award – recognition (for coaching)
National Sport Award Bloudek Award – for life-time work in sport

Official post held:

Member of WOVD Coaches/Instructors Commission

Adi made a major contribution to the development of sitting volleyball for women nationally, in Europe and worldwide, particularly as an instructor and mentor of many coaches and through his promotion of the sport.