Словения / Slovenia

Slovenia first appeared in their own right at the Albertville 1992 Winter Olympic Games and later that year at the Barcelona Games. A team of 28 contested six sports.

The first gold medals under the Slovenian flag came on the same day at Sydney 2000.

In shooting, Raymond DEBEVEC won the men's small bore rifle three positions and Iztok COP and Luka SPIK took gold in the rowing double sculls.

All three were still going strong in Beijing in 2008, where DEBEVEC took part in his sixth Olympic Games.

COP was at his fifth Olympic Games and SPIK had competed in four. Primoz KOZMUS was Slovenia's only gold medallist at Beijing 2008. He won the men's hammer throw.

One hundred years ago, Rudolf CVETKO was the first Slovenian to earn an Olympic medal. He took silver as part of the Austrian men's sabre team at the 1912 Games in Stockholm.

From 1920 Slovenians competed for Yugoslavia. Gymnast Leon STUKELJ collected three gold medals, a silver and two bronze. He competed in the 1924, 1928 and 1936 Olympic Games. At the age of 98 he was guest of honour at the Opening Ceremony of the Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996.

Miroslav CERAR continued the tradition in gymnastics, with gold medals on the pommel horse in 1964 and 1968.