Rowing Adds Olympian Iva Obradovic to Coaching Staff
November 02, 2016 | Women's Rowing
The UCLA women's rowing program has added Iva Obradovic, a former Olympian representing Serbia, to its coaching staff this season, head coach Amy Fuller Kearney announced this week.
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Obradovic was named a Pac-12 All-Century rowing selection in May 2016 after having had a decorated career as a student-athlete at California. She was a member of Cal's 2005 varsity eight that overcame a two-second comeback victory that set a championship record of 6:20.74 in the process, helping the Golden Bears clinch its first-ever NCAA women's rowing championship.
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Obradovic secured All-Pac-10 and all-region honors in 2009 and 2010. In addition, she was named a Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) first-team All-America selection in 2005, 2009 and 2010. In 2008, she led Cal to a fourth-place finish at NCAA Championships, taking first in the varsity eight at that season's Pac-10 Championships. In 2009, Obradovic guided the Golden Bears to a third-place finish at NCAA Championships.
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Internationally, Obradovic competed for the Serbian National Team from 2004-16. She represented Serbia at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. She took fifth place in the B final of the single scull at the 2008 Olympics. As an U23 single scull rower, Obradovic secured a bronze medal at the 2004 World U23 Regatta, gold at the 2005 World U23 Championships and silver at the U23 Championships in 2006.
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In addition, she won silver medals rowing for Serbia in the 2X and 1X at the 2011 and 2012 European Championships. Through her career, she raced in many finals at World and European Championships and other international regattas.
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Obradovic, who grew up in Novi Sad, Serbia, returned to California for the 2011 season as an undergraduate assistant coach.
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Since her days at Cal, Obradovic has trained with the United States 2013 lightweight women's double sculls and the men's quadruple sculls, who were based out of the California Rowing Club. She earned her bachelor's degree in anthropology from California in 2016.