Rok Petrovič

Rok Petrovič listen  (5 February 1966 – 16 September 1993) was a Yugoslav and Slovenian alpine skier.

Rok Petrovič
Alpine skier
DisciplinesGiant slalom, Slalom
Born(1966-02-05)5 February 1966
Ljubljana, Yugoslavia
Died16 September 1993(1993-09-16) (aged 27)
Vela Luka, Croatia
World Cup debut10 December 1984
Retired10 March 1989
Olympics
Medals0 (0 gold)
World Championships
Medals0 (0 gold)
World Cup
Seasons5
Wins5
Podiums9
Overall titles0
Discipline titles1

Petrovič was born in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia, the son of Krešimir Petrović, a well known sports psychologist of Croatian origin (His mother been from Vela Luka). His first success in alpine ski racing was the 1983 Junior World Championship slalom title in Sestriere, Italy.

After this he rapidly advanced up the world slalom rankings. In the 1985–86 Alpine Skiing World Cup season, he was practically unbeatable in slalom, his competition left to wait for rare mistakes in his highly aggressive and innovative skiing style. That season he won 5 races, is second in St. Anton, Austria and third in Geilo, Norway, easily winning the World Cup slalom title and becoming the first Yugoslav with a crystal globe.

After his championship-winning season, Petrovič was unable to recapture his winning form, the only hint of his championship season being a second place behind his teammate Bojan Križaj at the unforgettable race in Kranjska Gora next season. He finished eighth in the 1988 Winter Olympic Games giant slalom.

Due to his lack of winning results, he quit skiing in 1988 and began studies at the College of Sports in Ljubljana. He graduated in 1991 and continued with post-graduate study. He was to defend his M.Sc. thesis in the autumn of 1993, but shortly before defending his thesis he took a short break at the Croatian island Korčula and drowned in a diving accident.

Altogether he won 5 World Cup races, all in slalom and all in his champion season in 1985-86:

World Cup results

Season titles

Season Discipline
1986Slalom

Season standings

Season Age Overall Slalom Giant
slalom
Super-G Downhill Combined
198518301616
198619717
198720331127
1988216926
198922683431

Race podiums

Season Date Location Discipline Position
1985 20 March 1985 Park City, United States Slalom 2nd
1986 1 December 1985 Sestriere, Italy Slalom 1st
21 December 1985 Kranjska Gora, Yugoslavia Slalom 1st
25 January 1986 St. Anton, Austria Slalom 1st
2 February 1986 Wengen, Switzerland Slalom 1st
25 February 1986 Lillehammer, Norway Slalom 1st
2 March 1986 Geilo, Norway Slalom 3rd
11 March 1986 Heavenly Valley, United States Slalom 1st
1987 20 December 1986 Kranjska Gora, Yugoslavia Slalom 2nd
Awards
Preceded by
Dražen Petrović
Yugoslav Sportsman of the Year
1986
Succeeded by
Bojan Križaj
gollark: Haar wavelets.
gollark: Periodic sigmoids concatted together.
gollark: Sine waves.
gollark: I can't wait to beware further apioforms.
gollark: How exciting.
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