Il 20 luglio...

On July 20, 2024, the anniversary of the birth of Mima Jaušovec, a Slovenian tennis player born in Maribor in 1956, was marked. Jaušovec remains the only Slovenian woman with a singles victory at one of the four Grand Slam tournaments. Her most notable achievement came in 1977 when she won the French Open, defeating Romanian Florentina Mihai in the final after three sets (6:2, 6:7, 6:1). The tournament holds a special place in her distinguished career. Following this major success at age 20, Jaušovec reached the finals of the French Open twice more, in 1978 and 1983, though she did not win again. However, she secured a doubles title at the French Open in 1978, partnering with Romanian Virgina Ruzici. She also advanced to the semifinals of the US Open in 1976 and the Australian Open in 1980, reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon twice, in 1978 and 1981. A four-time Slovenian sports champion who once ranked sixth on the world strength ladder, Jaušovec retired from professional tennis in 1988. The day also saw the commemoration of several other historical sporting milestones. In 1871, Charles Allcock, secretary of the Football Association, proposed the establishment of a relegation system, leading to the creation of the FA Cup, the oldest football competition in the world. In 1902, Argentina played its first official match, defeating Uruguay 6:0 in Montevideo, which remains the largest defeat Uruguay has ever suffered. In 1939, Italy's legendary Giuseppe Meazza made his final appearance for the national team during a friendly against Finland in Helsinki, scoring the winning goal in a 3:2 victory. Meazza, second on the all-time goalscorers list for the Italian national team with 33 goals in 53 appearances, is remembered for his contributions to Italian football. In 1952, Czechoslovak athlete Emil Zatopek set a record in the 10-kilometer race at the Helsinki Olympics with a time of 29 minutes and 17 seconds. This record still stands today, held by Kenenise Bekele with a time of 26 minutes and 17.53 seconds. Zatopek also won gold medals in the 5-kilometer and marathon events at the same Olympics, making him the only athlete to achieve such a feat in a single Games. In 1984, East German athlete Uwe Hohn threw the javelin a record distance of 104.8 meters. Following changes in the javelin design, distances have since been reduced, and no one has surpassed Hohn’s mark. In 2007, Zlatko Zahović became the sports director of Maribor, a top-tier Slovenian football club. That year, Slovenian athlete Rok Deržanič achieved a silver medal at the European Youth Championships in Heerenveen, Netherlands, setting a junior national record in the decathlon with 7,560 points. He broke personal records in seven disciplines, including five events on the final day. In 2011, Chinese basketball player Yao Ming officially retired from his career. Standing at 2.29 meters tall, he played eight seasons in the NBA for the Houston Rockets but missed 250 games due to injuries over six years. In 2013, Slovenian taekwondo athlete Ivan Trajković won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Puebla, Mexico. Despite suffering an injury in his first fight, he managed to secure third place after defeating Polish opponent Piotr Hatowski. Also in 2013, Slovenian long-distance runner Maruša Mišmaš won a silver medal at the European Junior Championships in Rieti, Italy, improving her national record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase by over seven seconds. In 2021, the Milwaukee Bucks clinched their first NBA championship in the franchise's history, defeating the Phoenix Suns 105:98 in Game 6 of the Finals. Greek forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was named the Most Valuable Player of the series. In 2022, Kristjan Čeh claimed gold in the discus throw at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, USA, achieving a distance of 71.13 meters. This marked Slovenia's second gold medal at the World Championships, following Primož Kozmus' victory in the hammer throw in Berlin in 2009. In 2024, Tadej Pogačar of UAE Emirates won the fifth stage of the Tour de France, securing overall victory in the race. His closest competitor, Jonas Vingegaard of Visma | Lease a Bike, challenged him in the final kilometers of the stage, with the finish line located on the ascent of Col de l.