Union Olimpija | |||
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Nickname | Zmaji (The Dragons) | ||
Leagues |
Slovenian League Adriatic League |
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Founded | 1946 | ||
Arena | Arena Stožice | ||
Capacity | 12,480 | ||
Location | Ljubljana, Slovenia | ||
Team colors | Green, White |
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Main sponsor | Union Brewery | ||
President | Jani Möderndorfer | ||
Head coach | Gašper Okorn | ||
Championships |
15 Slovenian Leagues 19 Slovenian Cups 7 Slovenian Supercups 6 Yugoslav Leagues 1 FIBA Saporta Cup 1 Adriatic League 2 Central European Leagues |
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Website | Official website | ||
Uniforms | |||
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Active sport clubs of Olimpija | |||
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Football | Basketball | Hockey |
Košarkarski Klub Olimpija (English: Olimpija Basketball Club), commonly referred to as KK Olimpija or simply Olimpija, currently named Union Olimpija due to sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team that is based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The team competes in the Premier A Slovenian League and the Adriatic League.
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 37–14. Late in 1946, the club was renamed Enotnost and was known by that name until 1954 when it assumed the name AŠK Olimpia.
The club has been called by its current name since 1997. Union Olimpija won its first Yugoslav League title in 1957 under the direction of the coach/player Boris Kristančić. In one of the world's best emerging leagues, Olimpija went on to dominate the next 15 years, winning the Yugoslav title five more times, 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, 1993–94 was the club's best season as they won the European Cup against the Spanish ACB League club Taugrés under the direction of coach Zmago Sagadin. In 2001–02, the Slovenian team won the small triple crown, taking the Slovenian League championship, Slovenian Cup, and the Adriatic League.
The club was established in 1946 as the basketball department of the larger sports club Svoboda. Later it changed names quite a few times, from KK Enotnost (Unity, 1947–54) to AŠK Olimpija (Akademski Športni Klub Olimpija, 1955–76), to KK Brest Olimpija (1976–78), to KK Iskra Olimpija (1978–82), to KK ZZI Olimpija (1982–83), to KK Smelt Olimpija (1983–96), and finally, to KK Union Olimpija (1997–present). The last five names of the team have all included names of the main sponsors of the team.