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 Janica Kostelic I don't like talking about myself, let others say what I'm like. I think it's most silly when somebody says, I'm the best, or most beautiful or something like that. But if I have to...
I like having fun, enjoying life, doing what I like to do. You live only once and therefore every moment should be used for doing what we like. I adore skiing, especially when new snow falls, but actually I like much more racing on the track than free skiing.
I like when there's a task ahead of me that I have to do, so free skiing sometimes bores me. And yes, I'm stubborn, I admit, that's probably because I'm a Capricorn in horoscope, which brings me certain characteristics. I'm not obsessed with results or victories. I like being the best, but I prefer to enjoy at skiing. My dream in sport is winning an Olympic medal, that's something special and, to my mind, a highlight of every sportsman's career. |
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 Ivica Kostelic What can I say... She's terrific. She's cool. Among female skiers, and among male ones, I believe, there is no-one mentally stronger that her, and that is her great strength in the competition.
Jani is great, she's a little wild, a bit peculiar, but she's a nice person and a true pal, I would say. We've been training together the whole life, and it has sure helped her, since it's different when you compete against men all the time, and she made use of it perfectly. |
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 Marc Giardelli I met Janica in Vaile at the 1999. World Championship. By then, she was already successful but very skinny. I spoke to her and she told me about her dream of winning the World Cup. I thought: "That won't be easy". But, within a year, she gained weight, and this opened a range of possibilities in all events, and she was soon scoring excellent results. Then came the unfortunate and grave injury, but she managed to impress everyone and come back, proving that she is one of the all-time greats. I would compare her technique to that of Alberto Tomba. He skied like her: very quick and very beautiful. She is a joy to watch. At only 20, she is intelligent enough to overcome all obstacles that she will face, and there are many more successes ahead of her. |
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 Gordan Kozulj What can I say about Janica, that hasn't been said before? I've known her for two years, and what she has accomplished is greater than any athlete can even dream off. It is enough for a dream of a whole national team. First and foremost - I wish her health, and I hope that it will keep when she stops skiing, because the sort of injuries that she had can have permanent consequences. Fortunately, I can see that she started this season off well, and I wish her all the best in it. |
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 Vedran Pavlek Janica is a genius, not only when it comes to skiing, but with her approach to everything she does. She's never late a single minute for a training, she always does exactly what's been agreed, and she takes every responsibility. She has the ability to assess the speed she must ski at, when she must go at maximum speed, and when she can ski with less risk, and still be the fastest.
There has never been such style and such ease in female skiing, I think she's even better at it than Vreni Schneider. Janica is much more mature than you'd expect at her age and she understands very well what is happening around her. During the last two years, she's learnt a great deal and changed a lot. In her first World cup season everything that was happening was a big stress for her, and today she's ready for everything World Cup brings and means. |
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 Niko Kranjcar Only praises for Janica! Her results are an example of pure excellency. I still haven't met her but hope I will. This year again I will screen all her battles. |
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 Ivana Brkljacic When it comes to Janica and her results - one is simply left speechless. When someone wins four olympic medals, that is truly something unbelievable, and especially when she does it in one, single Games. As a person, she is wonderful, great, modest, lives for sport and has fully devoted herself to skiing and results. She bettered all Croatian athletes and no one is going to beat what she did. |
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 Damir Krznar Janica is great, and about her I can talk only in superlatives. She is a living legend of Croatian sport. Person who can win 3 gold medals couldn’t have any flaws. She is extremely positive, and I whish for more people like her in Croatia. |
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 Dubravko Simenc A wonderful girl who I've watched at the races several times. Her sucess is truly the fruit of her father Ante's, a sport enthusiast, labor. Unfortunately, at the moment, this is perhaps the only model of creating an athlete in Croatia - a little parental care. She, on her own, is an amazing athlete, the likes of which there are few, wide and far. She goes to bed early, and works tremendously. Her results are beyond impressive - they are phenomenal. Hollywood should make a movie about her. |
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 Spela Pretnar Janica is a very soft skier, she has an excellent feeling for the skis and she always attacks the track. She has a great rhythm from the beginning to the end of the track, one no other skier can stand. Her softness of skiing is special, and she doesn't bother with things us older skiers often think about. Her relaxedness is her great advantage. |
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 Nika Fleiss To my mind, she is a miracle of medicine, given how soon she came back on the track after a bad injury. She's also a miracle skier. From the start to the finnish, nothing can disturb her on the track, she keeps her rhythm, which makes her special.
She's found her style of skiing and she's fantastic. What especially fascinates me is when whe skis at half-strength during a training, and when her dad complains in the 8th, 9th or 10th round, when the track has been ruined, she does an excellent run and makes a huge margin to other skiers. As a person she's very warm, she can listen, she's always willing to help, she never forgets birthdays or other important dates, she's social and you one can always rely on her. |
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 Ante Kostelic Janica has never had fear of competition, which makes her special among most sportspersons. At trainings, it's hard for me to assess her form, because at trainings she often skis like nothing special, and on the track she's excellent.
People often ask me what I talk to her; that's no philosophy, most often we talk about where we are, where exactly our place is. It's hard to say anything new about slalom; Janica has her own special style and way of skiing, which she hasn't found in giant slalom, for example, and therefore she oscillates in it. But, what seems to me as a greatest victory is the fact that neither her, nor Ivica, can ever have enough of skiing. Other skiers can't wait to take off their ski boots and do something else, but I have to make them stop skiing. After a couple of days without skiing, they miss it, which, believe me, is not easy to achieve. |
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 Ante Maskovic I generally think all the best of her: as a person, as well as an athlete. From what I managed to learn about their family history and their grand and difficult road to success that Janica and Ivica passed together with their father, I think that the results they achieved are fantastic and rare, not only in Croatia but in the world as a whole. We can be proud to have such people who represent us in the world. |
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 Josip Sesar I have never met the girl in person, so that I can't say anything directly about her or judge her as a person. All that I know - I've read in the papers. But, that she is a top athlete, that shouldn't be in question. She has proven herself with great results and concentration in key moments. I follow her results and am pleased by them. |
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 Blazenko Lackovic I don't even have to mention her top sports results. She is a great optimist and this is probably what brought her back from the grave injuries that she had sustained. She sacrificed everything - including her health, for skiing. She has a great desire, work, and will, and I admire her for it. Right from the very beginning, her entire family has left me in awe, and I truly do admire them. As far as will and strentgh goes, Janica sets an example for all athletes, in handball as well as other sports, and if everybody looked up to her - Croatia would have far superior sports results. |
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 Josko Jelicic I think that everything has been said about Janica. The girl is truly unique. We are all proud that she is Croatian, and that she represents us. |
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 Pernila Wiberg She's great. She is wonderful in slalom and definitely the best slalom skier in the world at the moment.
I'm glad she's back on the track successfully after a bad injury, because I know all too well how hard a come-back is, even after slighter injuries than hers was. |
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 Dr. Vlasta Brozicevic I was impressed by Janica in all aspects. You can rarely meet a sportsperson with such a strong character. She's much more mature than her age suggests, she knows exactly what she wants, she's very dilligent and hard-working in everything she does.
Actually, she does everything from the top of her lungs and she's easy to cooperate with. She doesn't panic, doesn't make a drama, she's very simple, communicative, she can have fun, but be sad as well. She can express her feelings very well, which is particularly obvious in contact with children, who can feel that and accept her very well, as she accepts them. She's dedicated to her family, very sensitive, spontaneous and not obsessed with glamourous things, which is common for youths her age. In sport, she's a real professional and I must say it is a plesure to work with her. |
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 Gordan Giricek I've been asked about Janica so many times that it seems I've said everything and I keep repeating myself. Janica is a miracle, her results are phenomenal, and I wish her to go on like that. I wanted to go to Maribor to see the slalom, but I have a match, so I gave it up, and I must say I'm sorry. I wish she keeps up, and remains our model and our motivation.
My and her come-back after the injury have been compared a lot, but I don't think it makes any sense. Every injury is different, and every one of us is different as a person. My opinion is that, after an injury, it is better to start a week later than a week before, but she is obviously different, and I repeat; we're all different and everyone should stick to their inside rhythm. |
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 Iva Majoli Janica is a great sportsperson, which she proved with her come-back after the injury. I know very well what it's like to come back after an injury, because I was in a similar situation. As a person she's very nice, always smiling and in a good mood, and I enjoyed spending time with her during our recovery at Bruderholz hospital in Basle, where we met.
I support her, and I hope she kicks ass at the Golden Fox in Maribor. She's almost caught up with me with the number of best Croatian sportswoman titles, and I contend her for the next couple of years... |
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 Goran Ivanisevic The first time I heard of the Kostelic family was in 1996. I have to admit that I was surprised at how hard they were working their way to the top. I even remember giving a part of a prize to help Ivica Kostelic at the beginning of his career. Today the situation is different. Janica, even though she's only 17, is a very mature athlete. I think she'll be a real champ. From my own experience I can say there will be a lot of ups and downs, but she's mentally strong and will succeed. I wish her all the best with her health. |
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 Tone Vogrinec No skier her age has ever skied better. I know Gips and I know when they started and I know what they've been through, I wish them all best. What worries me is that when I analyze Janica's work and that of the Slovenian girls, Janica trains much more.. |
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