This year, the National Assembly determined that the Day of Slovenian Sport will be celebrated on the date when three Slovenian athletes won the first Olympic gold medals since the country gained its independence, namely in Sydney in 2000: Iztok Čop and Luka Špik in double sculls rowing and Rajmond Debevec in the 50 meter rifle 3 positions shooting.

At the same time, the holiday marks the opening day of the European Week of Sport, which will be celebrated for the sixth consecutive year in Slovenia, namely from 23 to 30 September. During that week, the organisers aim to reach around 200,000 active participants.

This holiday’s honorary patron is the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, who will also mark this occasion by hosting an Open House at his office. On Monday, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, visited Slovenia. He said that "Slovenia is a small country, but a giant in sports," adding that his talks with the Prime Minister Janez Janša were successful.