Slovenia
The land of dragons and shnaps!
Capital
Culture
History
Sports and recreation
Interesting facts
Like most Europeans, Slovenes have a passion for football (soccer), and there are several leagues at all levels throughout the country. Despite its short tenure—a result of the country’s relatively recent independence—the Slovene national team has had more than a little success in European and World Cup competition (it qualified for the European Cup in 2000 and its first World Cup in 2002). During the last decades of the 20th century, basketball and hockey also became popular. The national basketball and hockey teams participated in several world championships. Slovenia has well-developed winter sports centres at Kranjska Gora and Planica, where World Cup skiing events for men are traditionally held, and at Maribor, where the women’s competitions are hosted. Summer sports are also well represented, with numerous hiking trails, dozens of Olympic-quality swimming centres, and equestrian rings, which are centred on the village of Lipica.
The 1992 Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, France, were the first in which the country’s team participated under the flag of an independent Slovenia. Previously, Slovene athletes had competed for the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes and for Yugoslavia. One of Slovenia’s most famous athletes, gymnast Leon Štukelj (1898–1999), won six Olympic medals, three of which were gold.
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