Aco Petrovic passes away at 55

Aco Petrovic, one of Serbia’s elite coaches has sadly passed away at the age of 55 on December 1st it has been revealed. He had fought a long battle with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and leaves behind a stellar legacy of coaching in Serbia and beyond.

Aco Petrovic started as assistant coach at Serbian powerhouse Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) Belgrade in 1997, before moving to FMP Zeleznik Beograd a year later. He spent four seasons with FMP, and later started his relationship with Russian Basketball by coaching Lokomotiv Rostov na Donu and Unics Kazan, the latter of whom he claimed the Russian Cup for in 2009. An ill-fated link up with Crvena Zvezda followed, as his second stint with the club (this time as head coach) ended early as he was dismissed midway through the season.

Petrovic spent the last years of his life as the chief tactician at Zalgiris Kaunas (2010/2011) in Lithuania, and Asovmash Mariupol (2011/2012) in Ukraine. His last position was back on the bench of Unics Kazan through the 2012/2013 season. During his career he was assistant coach of the Yugoslavian national team through a golden period when the nation won the 2001 European Championships and the 2002 World Championships.

We wish Aco’s family all the best and thank Mr. Petrovic for his contribution to European Basketball.