KK Olimpija

KoÃÂ¡arkarski klub Olimpija () was a men's professional basketball club based in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Founded in 1946, Olimpija competed in the Yugoslav Federal League (1946 to 1991) and the Slovenian League (1991 to 2019). They won 17 Slovenian League championships, including eight consecutive titles between 1992 and 1999. They also won three regional league championships, one in the Adriatic League and two in the Central European League. In addition, Olimpija won 20 Slovenian Cup tournaments, 8 Slovenian Supercup titles, and one FIBA Saporta Cup. In July 2019, the team merged with Cedevita, forming a new club Cedevita Olimpija.

History

Olimpija basketball club was founded in 1946 as a section of the Svoboda Physical Culture Society. The first basketball game was played the same year against Udarnik and Olimpija came out on top with the score of 37Ã¢ÂÂ14. Late in 1946, the club was renamed Enotnost and was known by that name until 1954 when it assumed the name AÃÂ K Olimpia.

Olimpija won its first Yugoslav League title in the 1957 season under the direction of the coach/player Boris KristanÃÂiÃÂ. In the following years, Olimpija won five more Yugoslav titles, in 1959, 1961, 1962, 1966, and 1970. A new era for the club began with Slovenia's independence when Olimpija won eight consecutive league titles between 1992 and 1999.

On the international stage, the 1993Ã¢ÂÂ94 season was the club's best season as they won the European Cup against the Spanish ACB League club TaugrÃÂ©s under the direction of coach Zmago Sagadin. In the 2001Ã¢ÂÂ02 season, Olimpija won the "Small Triple Crown", taking the Slovenian League championship, Slovenian Cup, and the Adriatic League.

On 8 July 2019, Olimpija merged with Croatian team Cedevita, forming Cedevita Olimpija.

The club was a founding member of the Adriatic Basketball Association in 2015. In November 2020, the club's shares were transferred to Mornar Bar.

Names through history

The club was established in 1946 as the basketball department of the larger sports club Svoboda. Later, the name of the club was changed several times. Since 1976 and until its dissolution in 2019, the name of the club included the sponsorship name.

Arenas

The team's first venue was Tabor Gymnasium, before they moved to the 4,500 capacity Tivoli Hall in 1965. In 2010, the club moved into their new arena, Arena StoÃÂ¾ice, with a capacity of 12,480.

Notable players

The following players are regarded as the most important for Olimpija by the club's official website.

Ivo Daneu  Ã¢ÂÂ has won the Yugoslav national championship six times with Olimpija and earned over 200 appearances for the Yugoslavia national basketball team. In 2007, he became the first Slovenian player included in the FIBA Hall of Fame.
 Ã¢ÂÂ became the most valuable player of the 1967 FIBA European Champions Cup Final Four after scoring 30 points against Real Madrid. Bassin has also won the silver medal with Yugoslavia at the 1967 FIBA World Championship.
Marko MiliÃÂ  Ã¢ÂÂ former Olimpija and Slovenia national team captain, he became the first Slovenian player to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Vinko Jelovac  Ã¢ÂÂ earned 240 appearances for the Yugoslavia national team, with which he won the silver medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics.
Peter Vilfan  Ã¢ÂÂ spent most of his career playing for Olimpija; he became the first captain of the Slovenia national team after the country gained independence in 1991.
Jure Zdovc  Ã¢ÂÂ Regarded as one of the best point guards in Europe during the time of his career, Zdovc played for Olimpija in three spells between the 1980s and the early 2000s. Zdovc has won the EuroBasket with Yugoslavia in 1989 and 1991, and became the world champion with the team in 1990.