Croatia is the only country in the world with no mountain above 2,000 meters (though with probably the most beautiful mountain in Europe – VELEBIT) and with world’s top skier – Janica Kostelic. She was shining in women’s slalom in 1999 (being only 17 years old). Her second victory of the season put her in first place in the World Cup overall standings and strengthened her lead in the specialty standings. In her historical victory in Serre Chevalier, France, 5. December 1999, the difference between the first two was 1.78 seconds, the greatest achieved in the previous 20 years! Her ardent supporter is Goran Ivanisevic. In March 2001 Janica became the World Cup Champion in alpine skiing. This is one of greatest successes in the history of Croatian sport. Upon her arrival to the Zagreb airport she obtained 1256 roses and custard slices…

In 2002, at the Winter Olympic Games held in Salt Lake City in the USA, Janica Kostelic became the first Alpine skier to win as many as four Olympic medals at a single Game: three gold medals and one silver. This was a result of many years of painstaking work undertaken already at her tender age by her father Mr. Ante Kostelic and the whole family. As stated by Mr. Kostelic, this success would not have been possible without free Croatia.

And Janica’s brother, Ivica Kostelic, stunned everybody with his win in the 2001 World Cup slalom in Aspen, Colorado, USA, at the age of 22. He skied out of the 64th position in the first run, then was fastest in the second run to win in 1 minute, 38.81 seconds. It was the latest starting position for a slalom winner in World Cup history and third latest in any event. In December 2008 he secured his ninth career win at the Alta Badia slalom in Italy. Ivica is also known as the best blues and rock guitarist among skiers, and at the same time the best skier among blues and rock guitarists.

1. Ivica Kostelic, Croatia, 1 minute, 38.81 seconds. 2. Giorgio Rocca, Italy, 1:38.93. 3. Mario Matt, Austria, 1:39.00.

In 2003 Ivica and Janica Kostelic both won the title of world champions in slalom. They became the first siblings to win gold medals in the same event at the world’s.

In 2006 Janica won gold medals in combined event at the Olympic games in Torino, Italy, and silver medal in Super-G. With this achievement (four gold medals and two silver on two Olympic Games) she became

• the most successful skier among women in the history of Olympic Games
• the first alpine skier, male or female, to win four medals at one Olympics.
• the first female alpine skier to win six Olympic medals.

Her brother Ivica won silver olympic medal in men’s Alpine skiing combined event.

In 2010 Ivica won two silver medals for Croatia at the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada, one in slalom and another in combined. In 2011 he won a World Cup slalom race in Adelboden, Switzerland.

The life of the family of Kostelic is unique in the history of skiing sport (and may be in the history of sport in general). When Janica and Ivica were very young, they used to travel with their old Lada (Russian car), and also to sleep and eat in the car. At the same time other children stayed in a hotel, sleeping in their warm beds. Kostelic’s were sleeping also in a small mountain tent, sometimes at the temperature reaching -20 degrees Celsius. They were not able to pay for their trainings, so they used to wake up at 4 o’clock in the morning, to wash their faces with snow, and train at dawn (free of charge) with their worn up gloves, while others were still sleeping or having breakfast.

Ivica and Janica at the Olympic games in Salt Lake City,
USA, 2002, photo by Getty Images

It is well known that skiing is the sport of the rich. When Kostelic’s went back home from Austria, Germany, France or Switzerland, several times it happened to them that they had to sell their skies in order to be able to buy petrol for their Lada… And let us not forget, at that time the Greater Serbian aggression was raging throughout Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina (1990-1995). Mr. Ante Kostelic-Gips himself, father of Ivica and Janica, is an amazing Croatian sportsman and trainer, former handball player, working with his children on the long run. He remembers with deep gratitude an Austrian, Mr Willie Arnsteiner, wire-keeper, who donated them 100 Schillings daily during a critical period, and who predicted their great skiing future. At the age of 15 Janica had 22 consecutive wins at European competitions for children during one season. One day after the death of president Franjo Tudjman, Janica was skiing with mourning black armband. Young Kostelic’s were raised in deep patriotism, and their sacrifices will always be remembered. Let us also mention a regular short ritual of Christian crossing immediately before every competition. It is amusing to see how “objective” European TV media strive to avoid this indicative and important detail.

Janica with her three olympic gold medals
Salt Lake City, USA, 2002

At the very end of 1999 Janica had a tragic fall: four of her ligaments on the knee out of five were broken. After a very difficult operation and reconstruction of her knee, she had a painstaking program of getting back to normal living. She was able not only to walk again, but also to win on European, World, and Olympic competitions in skiing.

The human story of Kostelic’s is waiting to be written in all details, with a special emphasis on low blows of “independent” media. This story is much greater than the story about their sport successes. Ivica and Janica, like many others on this web page, would never have appeared without the advent of free Croatia.

Janica Kostelic,
winning the 2006 Women Alpine Ski World Cup super-G race
in Bad Kleinkircheheim (photo by Ruters/Calle Teornstroem)

Académie des sports, Paris – Le palmarès 2005 … Janica Kostelic reçoit le Prix International Monique Berlioux 2006 (performance la plus remarquable de l’année écoulée): Janica Kostelic (Croatie – Ski alpin), triple championne du monde de ski alpin.

Janica with Croatian coat of arms (AP Photo/A. Trovati), Sweden, 2006
World Cup champion for the third time,
set a new single-season points record for women after winning the final Alpine skiing race of the season in the giant slalom.

Croatia’s alpine skiing champion Janica Kostelic smells a brand new variety of Dutch-grown tulips named after her at a ceremony in Zagreb, 2006. A Dutch tulip grower Cor Grooteman from the town of Lisse, the Netherlands, asked Janica Kostelic for permission to use her name for the new sort of tulips, thus honouring the World Cup winner and Olympic champion. REUTERS/Nikola Solic

Janica – winner of the 2006 Laureus World Sports Award, Barcelona
Photo by Reuters

Ivica Kostelic won the World Cup slalom title, the combined World Cup title, and the overall World Cup title in 2011. He poses with a Japanese flag in tribute to the victims of the earthquake and ensuing Tsunami. Photo by Getty Images.