Antun "Tova" Stipančić (Duga Resa, 18 May 1949 – Zagreb, 20 November 1991[2]) was a highly accomplished Croatian and Yugoslav professional table tennis player.

His family of five — father Ivan, a janitor at the football club, mother Franca and two younger brothers, Marijan and Ivica — had a difficult time trying to make ends meet.

"Tova" Stipančić won his first tournament at the age of 12 in 1961, playing in Karlovac League's cadet category and, a few months later, was the best at Zagreb's "Ribnjak".

As Stipančić stepped forward, he won his first important international match in 1965 at the Open Championships of Poland in Krakow, defeating the European champion Kjell Johanson in the second round.

The basic reason for moving from the smaller club to the larger one was the need for an adequately strong sparring partner (and none was more suitable than Šurbek or Čordaš), as well as the great challenge of taking part in The European Cup.

With the new uniform he put on, there was still another major event: not long afterwards Tova Stipančić was married... As 1971 began, he moved to Zagreb, recalling that "...the new surrounding, new habits, days of great changes... was time for thinking".

The year's end was topped off with a glamorous prize: Stipančić celebrating a first class victory at the International Tournament in Zagreb's "Box of Matches" Hall.

Stipančić smashed Chinese Zhou Lansun and Li Furong, in the semi-finals he defeated Šurbek and, in the finals, the celebrated Zhuang Zedong: 16:21, 21:12 and 21:12, experiencing ecstatic ovations from the overjoyed Zagreb spectators.

In 1975 India built the Netaji Indoor Stadium, a 12,000-seat domed arena, specifically for the World Championships at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

"I always fought more with my hand and heart than with my legs" and the medal hunters, the experienced double Šurbek – Stipančić were off to win the table tennis Mount Everest!

The following year, at the 1980 European Championships in Bern Tova won two medals playing doubles, but sportswriters pointed out that he showed his true sport greatness in the fifth set.

Through his unique personality and exceptional athletic accomplishments, Tova Stipančić made an enduring impact and became a part of the history of sports, the world at large, Croatia, and his hometown of Duga Resa.