Jovana Sekulic

Jovana Sekulic
Personal information
Born (2002-11-07) November 7, 2002 (age 22)
Belgrade, Serbia
EducationPrinceton University
Sport
Country United States
SportWater polo
College teamPrinceton Tigers

Jovana Sekulic (/joʊˈvɑːnə ˈsɛkuːliːtʃ/ yoh-VAH-nə SEH-koo-leech; born November 7, 2002)[1] is a Serbian-American water polo player. She was selected as part of the United States team at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Biography

Sekulic was born on November 7, 2002, in Belgrade, Serbia.[2][3] Her family moved to the United States in c. 2014, settling in Media, Pennsylvania.[3][4] She played water polo in Serbia, a country in which that sport was very popular, and struggled to find a club when she moved to the U.S., later joining that country's Maverick Water Polo club.[5] Early on in the U.S., she often played against boys due to her advanced skill level, and still was successful.[5] She attended Episcopal Academy in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, where she competed in water polo, track and swimming,[6] and was a member of its Vocal Ensemble.[4] In water polo, she was selected twice to the All-Eastern first-team, was a two-time Eastern most valuable player and led her team to three Eastern championships.[6]

Sekulic was a member of the U.S. women's youth national water polo team in high school.[6] She graduated from Episcopal in 2022 and enrolled at Princeton University, where she continued her career.[6] In the 2022 season at Princeton, she played 27 games and scored 74 goals, being named the Collegiate Water Polo Association Rookie of the Year, third-team All-American, first-team All-Conference and first-team CWPA All-Tournament.[7] The following season, she played 28 games and recorded a team-leading 76 goals, being named second-team All-American, first-team CWPA All-Tournament, first-team NCAA first-team All-Tournament, first-team All-Conference and the CWPA Player of the Year.[7]

Sekulic was selected for the U.S. national team which competed at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships.[5] She scored two goals at the World Aquatics Championships and also competed at the 2023 World Aquatics World Cup, scoring twice.[8] She redshirted at Princeton in 2024 to focus on international competitions.[3] She scored four goals for the U.S. at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships and later was chosen for the U.S. squad at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[3][8]

References

  1. ^ "SEKULIC Jovana". 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2025.
  2. ^ "Jovana Sekulic". World Aquatics.
  3. ^ a b c d "Episcopal Academy grad Jovana Sekulic earns spot on U.S. Olympic water polo team". Delaware County Daily Times. Associated Press. May 31, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Episcopal Academy's Jovana Sekulic is Main Line Girls Athlete of the Week". PA Prep Live. September 21, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c DeGeorge, Matthew (July 28, 2023). "World Aquatics Championships: Media's Jovana Sekulic looking to make a splash in water polo competition". Delaware County Daily Times. Archived from the original on July 12, 2024. Retrieved August 1, 2024 – via archive.ph.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^ a b c d McCarty, Dan (June 19, 2024). "Delco athlete strives for Olympic water polo gold". The Spirit.
  7. ^ a b "Jovana Sekulic". Princeton Tigers.
  8. ^ a b "Jovana Sekulic". USA Water Polo.