Rok Petrovič

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

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

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