OK Maribor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
i-Vent Maribor
Full nameOdbojkarski klub i-Vent Maribor
Founded14 June 1945; 78 years ago (14 June 1945)[1]
GroundTabor Hall
Maribor, Slovenia
(Capacity: 3,261)
ChairmanMilan Kuster
ManagerSebastijan Škorc
CaptainŽiga Donik
LeagueSlovenian Volleyball League
2023−24Regular season: 3rd
Playoffs: Third place
WebsiteClub home page
Uniforms
Home
Away
Championships
1992, 1993, 2021

Odbojkarski klub Maribor (English: Maribor Volleyball Club) or simply OK Maribor, known as i-Vent Maribor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Slovenian professional volleyball team based in Maribor. The team play their home games at Tabor Hall and competes in the Slovenian Volleyball League, the top division of Slovenian volleyball. Founded in 1945, the club has won the Slovenian national championship three times (1992, 1993 and 2021) and the national cup four times (1992, 1994, 1995 and 2006).

History[edit]

Immediately after the Second World War, on 14 June 1945, the men's volleyball section of the Železničar Sports Association was established.[1] They played in the inaugural edition of the Slovenian national championship in 1946 and finished in fourth place.[1] In 1947, the club was renamed as Odbojkarski klub Železničar (English: Železničar Volleyball Club).[1] In 1951, the team was relegated from the Slovenian championship.[1]

In 1976, Železničar merged with its city rival Branik and became Odbojkarski klub Maribor (English: Maribor Volleyball Club).[1] In 1980, Maribor won the Yugoslav second division and qualified for the highest level of Yugoslav volleyball, the Yugoslav Volleyball Championship.[2] The club was relegated during its first top division season, but the following year they won the second division and were thus immediately promoted back.[2] They were also the runners-up of the Yugoslav Cup in 1983.[1] Maribor remained in the top division until 1989, when the Yugoslav League was reorganized and reduced to eight teams.[2] Maribor again immediately returned to the top tier after winning the A2 division in 1990, but the following year the club again dropped out of the Yugoslav top tier. This was also the last season before the breakup of Yugoslavia.[2]

In 1991, Slovenia gained independence from Yugoslavia, and the Volleyball Federation of Slovenia established its own league system. OK Maribor won the first two editions of the newly established Slovenian Volleyball League, becoming back-to-back national champions in 1992 and 1993.[3] As Slovenian champions, the team competed in the 1992–93 edition of the CEV European Champions Cup, where they were eliminated in the first round by the Swiss team Lausanne UC.[4] During the 1990s, Maribor also won the national cup three times and was the league runner-up on several occasions.[5] In January 2006, Maribor, competing under the sponsorship name Prevent Gradnje IGM, won its fourth national cup title by defeating Salonit Anhovo in the final, the first major trophy won by the club in eleven years.[6]

Between 2009 and 2019, the club went through a period of stagnation, never finishing higher than fourth in the league. In 2009–10, Maribor even finished in the last, 12th place.[7] In December 2019, the club signed a sponsorship deal with Merkur and changed its name to Merkur Maribor.[8] In 2021, Maribor won their third national championship after defeating ACH Volley 3–2 in the final, preventing them from winning their 17th consecutive title.[9]

Name changes[edit]

Throughout its history, OK Maribor has been named after their main sponsor on numerous occasions:

  • Stavbar/MTT Maribor (until 1989)
  • Tehno Mobil (1989–1990)
  • Vileda Maribor (1990–1994)
  • Bella Viola Maribor (1994–1995)[10]
  • Marles Maribor (1995–1996)
  • Gradis Maribor (1997–1998)
  • Stavbar IGM Maribor (1998–2004)
  • Prevent Gradnje IGM (2004–2007)
  • MTB Maribor (2008–2010)
  • Lunos Maribor (2013–2015)
  • Merkur Maribor (2019–2023)
  • i-Vent Maribor (2024–present)

Season-by-season records[edit]

Season League Position Domestic cup Europe
1991–92 1. DOL Champions Winners —
1992–93 1. DOL Champions Runners-up CEV European Champions Cup PR
1993–94 1. DOL Runners-up Winners CEV European Champions Cup R16
1994–95 1. DOL 3rd Winners CEV Cup Winners' Cup QF
1995–96 1. DOL Runners-up Runners-up CEV Cup Winners' Cup GS
1996–97 1. DOL Runners-up Runners-up CEV Cup Winners' Cup GS
1997–98 1. DOL 3rd Semi-final CEV Cup Winners' Cup GS
1998–99 1. DOL Runners-up Semi-final CEV Cup MP
1999–00 1. DOL 5th Runners-up CEV Cup MP
2000–01 1. DOL 6th Quarter-final —
2001–02 1. DOL 3rd Quarter-final CEV Cup MP
2002–03 1. DOL Runners-up Semi-final CEV Cup MP
2003–04 1. DOL 5th Semi-final CEV Cup MP
2004–05 1. DOL 5th Round of 16 —
2005–06 1. DOL Runners-up Winners —
2006–07 1. DOL Runners-up Quarter-final CEV Cup R16
CEV Top Teams Cup PR
2007–08 1. DOL 3rd Quarter-final CEV Challenge Cup R3
CEV Cup R32
2008–09 1. DOL 6th Quarter-final CEV Challenge Cup R2
2009–10 1. DOL 12th Round of 16 —
2010–11 1. DOL 10th Fourth round —
2011–12 1. DOL 8th Round of 16 —
2012–13 1. DOL 5th Semi-final —
2013–14 1. DOL 5th Semi-final —
2014–15 1. DOL 7th Round of 16 —
2015–16 1. DOL 5th Quarter-final —
2016–17 1. DOL 5th Round of 16 —
2017–18 1. DOL 5th Quarter-final —
2018–19 1. DOL 4th Quarter-final —
2019–20 1. DOL 3rd Runners-up —
2020–21 1. DOL Champions Quarter-final —
2021–22 1. DOL 3rd Runners-up CEV Champions League GS
2022–23 1. DOL 3rd Semi-final CEV Challenge Cup Q32
2023–24 1. DOL 3rd Runners-up CEV Challenge Cup Q32

Players[edit]

2022−23 team[edit]

Number Name Birthdate Height (cm) Position
2 Slovenia Jaka Jevšnik (2001-06-21) 21 June 2001 (age 22) 187 Libero
3 Slovenia Timotej Vodušek (2004-11-19) 19 November 2004 (age 19) 195 Middle blocker
4 Slovenia Gregor Pernuš (1999-07-16) 16 July 1999 (age 24) 198 Setter
5 Slovenia Sani Adžović (2002-11-03) 3 November 2002 (age 21) 198 Opposite
6 Canada Connor McConnell (1998-08-24) 24 August 1998 (age 25) 201 Opposite
8 Slovenia Rok Bračko (2004-04-21) 21 April 2004 (age 20) 195 Wing spiker
9 Slovenia Žiga Kumer (1999-09-09) 9 September 1999 (age 24) 184 Libero
10 Slovenia Janž Janez Kržič (2003-06-26) 26 June 2003 (age 20) 205 Middle blocker
11 Slovenia Žiga Donik (1995-09-21) 21 September 1995 (age 28) 192 Wing spiker
12 Slovenia Filip Leva (2001-07-20) 20 July 2001 (age 22) 194 Middle blocker
13 Slovenia Miha Fink (2003-09-20) 20 September 2003 (age 20) 200 Middle blocker
14 Slovenia Nejc Najdič (2006-05-05) 5 May 2006 (age 17) 196 Setter
16 Slovenia Jaka Iršič (2004-06-03) 3 June 2004 (age 19) 192 Wing spiker
21 Slovenia Maj Toplišek (2005-05-27) 27 May 2005 (age 18) 190 Wing spiker
42 Montenegro Nemanja Peruničić (2001-02-09) 9 February 2001 (age 23) 200 Wing spiker
Head coach: Sebastijan Škorc
Assistant coach: Alen Kranjc

Source: Volleyball Federation of Slovenia

Honours[edit]

  • Slovenian Volleyball League
    • Winners (3): 1991–92, 1992–93, 2020–21
    • Runners-up (7): 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2002–03, 2005–06, 2006–07
  • Slovenian Cup
    • Winners (4): 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–95, 2005–06
    • Runners-up (7): 1992–93, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1999–2000, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2023–24

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Železničarsko športno društvo Maribor (2007). "Železničarsko športno društvo Maribor 1927 – 2007" (PDF). navdih.net (in Slovenian). p. 168. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Studia Historica Slovenica (2003). "Maribor skozi čas II". issuu.com (in Slovenian). Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Dosedanji državni odbojkarski prvaki". odbojka.si (in Slovenian). Volleyball Federation of Slovenia. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  4. ^ "LAUSANNE UC 3–1 Vileda MARIBOR". cev.eu. European Volleyball Confederation. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  5. ^ "Dosedanji zmagovalci Pokala Slovenije". odbojka.si (in Slovenian). Volleyball Federation of Slovenia. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  6. ^ "Mariborčani po 11 letih spet pokalni prvaki". sta.si (in Slovenian). Slovenian Press Agency. 22 January 2006. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  7. ^ "1. DOL Radenska Classic 2009/2010 – Končni vrstni red". odbojka.si (in Slovenian). Volleyball Federation of Slovenia. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  8. ^ Š. L. (16 December 2019). "Mariborčani odslej z novim generalnim sponzorjem in imenom" (in Slovenian). Siol. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  9. ^ "Konec 16-letne prevlade ACH-ja, Maribor je tretjič državni prvak" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. 25 April 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Mariborski odbojkarji dobili pokrovitelja". sta.si (in Slovenian). Slovenian Press Agency. 28 November 1994. Retrieved 26 April 2021.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=OK_Maribor&oldid=1220852553"