Janko Gojković (born April 14, 1973) is a Bosnian former swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle and butterfly events. He is a three-time Olympian (1992, 1996, and 2000), and a member of the Bosnian swimming team since the breakup of

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

in 1991. He held numerous Bosnian records in the 100 m butterfly, and achieved top finishes from the

European Championships The European Championships is a multi-sport tournament which brings together the existing European Championships of some of the continent's leading sports every four years. The inaugural edition in 2018 was staged by the host cities of Berlin, ...

. After his sporting career ended in 2000, Gojković worked in various swim clubs across Great Britain and some parts of Eastern Europe.

Career

Early years

Gojković, a native of

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajev ...

SR Bosnia and Herzegovina The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Bosna i Hercegovina, Социјалистичка Pепублика Босна и Херцеговина), commonly referred to as Socia ...

, started swimming at the age of seven as a member of PK Sarajevo under a former Yugoslav system. He accepted a full scholarship to attend the

Long Beach Polytechnic High School Long Beach Polytechnic High School, founded in 1895 as Long Beach High School, is a four-year public high school located at 1600 Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach, California, United States. The school serves portions of Long Beach, including Bixby ...

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, as an exchange student. He played for the school's swimming team, and also lettered in water polo, before his graduation in 1990. The following year, Gojković became a member of the SFR Yugoslavia team, and later achieved a top 5 finish in the 100 m butterfly at the European Championships in

Athens, Greece Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

International career

Gojković became the first ever swimmer to represent

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and ...

at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

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since the breakup of

. In the

100 m butterfly 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

, Gojković posted a new Bosnian record of 56.81 to earn a second spot and forty-fourth overall in heat one, trailing Spain's top favorite

Martín López-Zubero Martín López-Zubero Purcell (born April 23, 1969), also known as Martin Zubero, is a former competition swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. López-Zubero was born in the United States, swam in international competition for Spain, and holds du ...

by a full body length of 2.77 seconds. Three days later, in the 200 m butterfly, he pulled off another second spot in the same heat at 2:09.08, but finished only in forty-first overall out of 46 swimmers from the prelims. Shortly after his first Games, Gojković left war-torn Bosnia, and later attended college in

Sheffield, England Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and ...

, where he majored in business and management. At the ASA National British Championships he won the 100 metres butterfly title in 1994. Following his graduation in 1996, Gojković traveled with the Bosnian team to the United States for a two-month pre-Olympic camp in

Pell City, Alabama Pell City is a city in and one of the county seats of St. Clair County, Alabama, United States, other seat being Ashville. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,939. At the 2010 census, the city-limit population jumped to 12,695. It was ...

. Upon his team's arrival, the Bosnians received a warm welcome from the local residents, gathering on street corners and waving blue and gold flags. Gojković admitted that while his team gathered through the city proper, he opened a large atlas, and could not find a place called Pell City: "I didn't believe there was such a place." On his second Olympic appearance in

Atlanta 1996 The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

, Gojković failed to reach the top 16 final in any of his individual events, finishing thirty-sixth in the

100 m freestyle The 100 metre freestyle is often considered to be the highlight ( Blue Ribbon event) of the sport of swimming, like 100 metres in the sport of Athletics. The first swimmer to break the one-minute barrier ( long course) was Johnny Weissmuller, ...

(51.28), and forty-first in the

(56.11). Two years later, at the 1998 FINA World Championships in

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

, Australia, Gojković delivered a spectacular swim with a thirty-third-place effort in the

, posting a lifetime best of 56.02. Gojković swam only in the men's 100 m butterfly, as a 27-year-old, at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

in Sydney. He achieved a

FINA FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...

B-standard entry time of 56.26 from the Croatian Open Championships in

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranea ...

. He stormed home on the final lap to lead the second heat in a new Bosnian record of 55.55, holding off a fast-pacing Aleksandar Miladinovski of Macedonia by seven hundredths of a second (0.07). Gojković’s best effort was not enough to advance him into the semifinals, as he shared a thirty-ninth place tie with Venezuela's

Oswaldo Quevedo Oswaldo Jose Quevedo Boschetti (born August 4, 1976 in Maracay) is a former butterfly and freestyle swimmer from Venezuela, who won the 50m and 100m Butterfly at the 2000 South American Championships (50m) in Mar del Plata. Two years later, at th ...

in the prelims.

Life after swimming

After his sporting career ended in 2000, Gojkovic worked as an age group coach in various swim clubs across Great Britain and some parts of Eastern Europe. He spent four years at Maxwell Swim Club in

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre, Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamsh ...

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, before returning to his native Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2004. Currently, Gojkovic is appointed as the president and chief executive officer of PK Sarajevo and also, a media marketing manager for an advertising agency Via Mediji.

References

External links

GK Sarajevo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gojkovic, Janko 1973 births Living people Yugoslav male swimmers Bosnia and Herzegovina male swimmers Olympic swimmers for Bosnia and Herzegovina Swimmers at the 1992 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Yugoslav male freestyle swimmers Male butterfly swimmers Sportspeople from Sarajevo Bosnia and Herzegovina male freestyle swimmers