Vanja Grbic at Dedinje: Artery 99 Percent Blocked
Serbian volleyball legend Vanja Grbic shared an update from the Dedinje Institute: after a coronary angiography he got a stent and a balloon, and says a heart attack has been avoided for now.
A selfie from a hospital bed, a smile despite the tubes, and a message meant to calm rather than alarm, that was the news that swept through Serbian sports today. Vladimir “Vanja” Grbic, one of the best volleyball players Serbia has ever produced, shared an update from the Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases Dedinje and explained himself what had happened to him.
He went in for a checkup with Dr. Bojic, he says it was routine. Doctors ran a coronary angiography and found that one of his coronary arteries was blocked as much as 99 percent, the other 70 percent. He had one stent and one balloon fitted. He described it himself, without holding back, on Instagram, alongside a photo from his hospital room.
“Routine checkup at Dedinje with Dr. Bojic. They found out that we Grbics, with our hearts, still need to be careful. After the angiography, one stent and one balloon. One coronary artery blocked 99 percent, the other 70 percent. A heart attack has been avoided for now.”
Grbic wrote that on Instagram, confirming what has worried the Grbic family for years, that their hearts have a way of acting up.
There is also a small difference in tone between the sources. He himself calls the checkup routine, while Espreso reports he was “urgently operated on” after doctors discovered a critical blockage during the exam. Whatever the original plan was, he came out of it with a stent in his chest and a message that the worst has passed.
He didn’t miss the chance to joke, at his own expense and at the expense of those closest to him.
“That means I’ll be tormenting my Sara for a while longer, and annoying ‘SOMEONE’ with my presence.”
A family that doesn’t know how to give up
Grbic was born in 1970 in Klek, started out in volleyball at Mladost in Zagreb, and played for Vojvodina before moving to Italy in 1992, where for years he was one of the best players in the world. He wore the jerseys of Padova and Cuneo, played in Brazil as well, then for Roma, Osaka, PAOK and Dynamo Moscow, before finishing his career at Fenerbahce. With the national team he won Olympic gold in Sydney in 2000 and bronze in Atlanta in 1996, silver at the 1998 World Championship, and the European title in 2001.
His father, Milos Grbic, was also a volleyball player and coach, and died from the effects of a heart attack in 2008. That is why the line in his message, that the Grbics have hearts that need watching, carries a weight here that it wouldn’t carry from someone else.
A day earlier, on September 22, his brother Nikola Grbic had reason to celebrate as Poland’s head coach. His team thrashed Germany 3-0 in the European Championship quarterfinal, winning 25-23, 25-17 and 25-17 by sets. Two days for the Grbic volleyball family: one with the best possible news from the court, the other with a warning from a hospital room.
Grbic closed his message the way Serbian sports fans remember him best, fighting.
“Thanks to the medical team and everyone who helped make sure the worst was avoided. And now, back to 101. I don’t know any other way. Let’s keep going. The real battles are still ahead… GIVING UP IS WORSE THAN LOSING.”
No return date to the court has been announced, but the message itself makes clear the break won’t last long. For someone who, throughout his career, always chose to keep going through every setback, this sounds like another match he has already chalked up as a win.
