Aleksander

Ljubljana – Slovenia will have to use all EU funds available, grants and loans, to achieve balanced regional development, said Mayor Aleksander Jevšek before his candidacy for minister without portfolio for development and European cohesion policy was endorsed by two parliamentary working bodies on Saturday.

Ljubljana – Parliamentary working bodies were set up at Wednesday’s session and can now start their work despite the fact that the opposition Democrats (SDS) did not nominate their candidates for chairs and vice-chairs in protest over the breakdown of these posts.

Brdo pri Kranju – Ukraine’s national football team will be getting ready for the last match of the European part of qualifications for this year’s World Cup in Qatar in Slovenia, the sport channel Sportklub reported on Saturday.

Ljubljana – The latest public opinion poll measuring how happy locals are with the work of their mayors in Slovenia’s 12 urban municipalities sees Slovenj Gradec Mayor Tilen Klugler receiving the highest mark, followed by Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Janković and Murska Sobota Mayor Aleksander Jevšek.

Ljubljana – Aleksander Zupančič, the chief-of-staff to Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak, has been appointed chairman of power grid operator Elektro Ljubljana. He will start his four-year term on 6 January, the company said. Zupančič is already a supervisor at the partially state-owned energy group Petrol.

Kanal – The Kogoj Days, an international festival of Slovenian contemporary classical music, will open with tonight’s concert by the acclaimed Slovenian Octet in the town of Kanal, west. Due to Covid-19, only one of the festival’s nine concerts will be played outside Kanal, across the border in Italy.

Brnik – The Slovenian men’s basketball team returned to the homeland on Sunday afternoon after winning the 4th place at the Summer Olympics. They were greeted at Ljubljana airport by some 500 fans and senior sport officials, who expressed gratitude for the unbelievable result for the team that made its Olympic debut in Tokyo.

Tokyo – The Slovenian men’s basketball team lost to Australia 93:107 at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday to settle for the fourth place in what is the nation’s first Olympic appearance, as Australia proved too strong throughout the bronze medal match.

Tokyo – Slovenia made it to the quarter-finals of the basketball tournament at the Tokyo Olympic Games after defeating the hosts Japan 116:81 for what is their second win in as many matches.

Led by the NBA All-Star Luka Dončić, Slovenia were in the lead throughout the game. With plenty of motivated players in action, they were effective on the offensive and solid in defence.

Brussels – Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša is among the EU leaders attending a summit in Brussels on Thursday dedicated to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, post-pandemic economic recovery, migrations, and relations with Russia and Turkey. Janša did not make a doorstep statement or take questions from reporters on arrival in Brussels.