He’s ours,not yours! Reinterpreting national identity in a post-socialist context

Introduction

The collapse of socialism began during the late 1980s. This led to the downfall of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, of which Croatia and Slovenia were component parts from 1943 to 1991. Those two, newly created, nation-states had significantly different paths out of Yugoslavia. Croatia’s path had much more far-reaching consequences to the normalisation of socio-political and economic connections with neighbouring countries (especially Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina). Slovenia ‘paid for’ its split with Yugoslavia with a ten-day war, while the war in Croatia lasted five years. ¹ Socio-political changes in the former Yugoslavia raised the issue of nations and nationalism in the territories of the former state.

In the early 1990s, sporting successes served to aid national homogenisation and made Croatia recognisable on the international stage. A third of Croatia’s national territory was occupied between the summer of 1991 and the spring of 1992. The country was under political and economic embargo, and world-class athletes (especially those already enjoying success in the NBA league, such as basketball players Dražen Petrović and Stojko Vranković) played the role of Croatian ambassadors to the world. The newly created nation-states of Croatia and Slovenia strove to find the ‘shortest’ path to affirmation on the European and international level, using sport as a kind of shortcut (Bartoluci, 2013; Doupona Topič and Coakley, 2010). A silver medal in basketball at the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1991, when Croatian basketball players played in the finals with the famous ‘Dream Team’, was considered not only a (national) sporting success, but an international affirmation of the newly formed nation-state. Croatia owes its image as a ‘sporting nation’ primarily to successes in team sports such as football, handball and water polo, as well as individual sports such as tennis (Goran Ivanišević was Croatia’s first Olympic medal winner and Wimbledon champion).

During the time Yugoslavia existed (1945-1991), Slovenian national identity became stronger mainly due to the achievements of Slovenian alpine skiers. At the time, Slovenes preferred individual sports, in which they were quite successful. Furthermore, these individual sports distanced Slovenia from the other Yugoslav republics, which emphasised team sports they enjoyed success in, such as football and basketball (Doupona Topič, 2004). Slovenia compensated for its failures in team sports with a path to individual sports, mainly alpine skiing, ski jump, and mountaineering. The national identity of this era was marked by ski jump, the ski jump hills in Planica valley, and later the Elan ski equipment brand. Television broadcasts of world cup skiing events regularly caused disruptions in schoolwork, as pupils and teachers alike supported Slovenian skiers in front of the TV.

Croatian and Slovenian society have a great deal in common, from history to cultural context. After being allies in their path out of Yugoslavia, they established diplomatic relations in early 1991. However, there still exist some ‘points of contention’ between these two nation-states, such as border disputes (sea border), bank savings and fishing zones. Some of these issues are the subject of political conflict, and they are still being resolved.

From a sociological perspective, sport and sporting successes are indicators of social changes, and in this case, they serve as an element for understanding a specific post-socialist context. Although there are numerous examples of Croatian and Slovenian athletes who have changed their citizenship since the 1990s, not all cases engendered media attention and the label of ‘traitor’, as did the case of Jakov Fak (Bartoluci and Doupona Topič, 2017). Jakov Fak is a biathlete who competed for Croatia until 2010. After he won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games in Vancouver, he announced that he would be joining the Slovenian biathlon team, which implied a change in citizenship. Although his sport was unknown to most Croats, his switch to the flag of another state became the subject of great public debate. Eight years later, Fak would be one of the athletes nominated by the Slovenian Olympic Committee to bear the Slovenian flag at the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games in PyeongChang. His non-Slovenian origins led some people to say that this was an inappropriate role for him. Due to alleged chauvinist and xenophobic messages published on social networks, he eventually withdrew his candidacy as the flag bearer (Kavčić, 2018). This case, to use the language of Billig (1995), shows again how banal nationalism quickly takes the form of ‘hot’ nationalism with national flags waved passionately. However, hot, primordialist, ethnic nationalism can also elicit strong resistance among those who identify in connection with civic nationalism.

This paper focuses on whether there is anything in the relationship between sport, national identity and the media that has changed in the eight years since Jakov Fak changed his citizenship and began competing for the Slovenian national team. It will also examine how the perception of Fak as an athlete and of his success has changed over time due to changing socio-political circumstances – in 2009 and 2010 when he competed for Croatia, and after 2010 when he began competing for Slovenia. Prior research (Bartoluci and Doupona Topič, 2017) pointed to manipulation of the concepts of the ‘nation’ and ‘nationalism’ by some media outlets and political actors, who attempted to retain Jakov Fak as a part of Croatian society for what were presented as ‘sporting’ reasons. After transferring to the Slovenian team, Fak enjoyed a string of successes, especially in 2012 when he won gold and silver medals at the World Championships and at the 2018 Olympic Games in PyeongChang, where he won a silver medal. Fak has assimilated into Slovenian society, learned the Slovenian language and has been proclaimed the best Slovenian biathlete multiple times. However, even eight years after his citizenship change, the issue of national identity and nationalism surrounding him has not been fully settled.

For many athletes, changing national allegiances is the only way to keep their dreams of a career in sports alive, especially if their home country is stacked with talent in their particular sport. As Reiche (2016) argued, there are two main motivations for an athlete to change citizenship and compete for another country: economic reasons and sporting reasons. Horowitz and McDaniel (2015) point out that 6.8% of medal-winning athletes won medals at the Summer Olympic Games 2012 for a country different from the one in which they were born. To date, more than 100 foreign athletes have taken Slovenian citizenship, such as Britta Bilač, Marija Šestak, and well-known track and field sprinter Merlene Ottey (Bartoluci and Doupona Topič, 2017).

A triangle: sport, national identity and the media

Anderson (1983) describes the nation as an imagined community that is often visualised and recognised through sporting competitions. Hargreaves (1986: 154) claims that the media are probably the most important institution reproducing national identity today, but it often does so through coverage of sports. This triangle of sport, national identity and media has been the subject of regular research in recent years (e.g. Billings et al., 2011; Griggs and Gibbons, 2014; Jakubowska and Ličen, 2019; Lee and Maguire, 2011; Vincent and Harris, 2014).

Media interpretations of the performance of athletes and teams at large sporting competitions such as the Olympic Games or the FIFA World Cup can influence the formation of both national identity and nationalism. These events, ‘without comprehensive media coverage, national flags flying, national anthems playing, politicians involved in the ceremonies, military displays, tables comparing national standings, athletes competing in national uniforms – and no men – is almost inconceivable’ (Rowe et al., 1998: 120). Thus, an analysis of media discourse regarding sports events offers insight into the dominant values and ideological perspectives of a society. Media also influence the formation of social practice through their narratives and interpretations of sporting events. Media coverage emphasising a nationalist narrative often influences public opinion about the nation and nationalism (Billings et al., 2011; Falcous, 2007; Ličen and Billings, 2012; Ličen et al., 2017). Political figures also influence the construction of public opinion related to the nation and nationality. Taking these factors into account, our research assumes a distinction between ethnic and civic nationalism and uses this distinction to inform our analysis of media discourse, political discourse and discourse centred on sports figures.

The debate on ethnic and civic nationalism, according to McCrone (1998), is built into a broader discourse on the origins and age of the nation, which is usually reduced to a basic division between primordialism and modernism. Anthony D. Smith reconciles the basic assumptions of primordialism and modernism by identifying two ideal types of determinants of the nation or national identity: the Western or civic-territorial model, and the Eastern or ethnic model. Faith in shared origins is a mythical construction; however, it becomes ‘real’ when members of a nation define themselves as people ‘of the same heritage’. Ethnic identity arises from the idea of a nation as an ethnic or cultural community; it brings ‘heritage’ into the foreground – origins, vernacular language, traditions, shared myths and historical memories. The nation is viewed as a culturally homogenous whole, and ethnic identity is reinforced through education and national institutions, rituals and ceremonies that affirm a continuity of ethnic traditions and create a homogenous culture. To this end, particular ‘historical’ figures, events, symbols and myths are emphasised to remind community members of their shared ethnic and cultural kinship.

The distinction between civic and ethnic nationalism has been criticised frequently in the literature (e.g. Bairner, 2001; Brubaker, 1999). In practice, ‘pure’ forms of one or the other type of nationalism are not found; modern nations are simultaneously ethnic and civic (Smith, 1986, 1991). This overlap between recognisable public discourse in the post-socialist societies and the significance of civic and ethnic nationalism inspired the use of this dichotomy as the analytical framework in this research. ²

Research has shown that ‘the media from different countries mediate the same events differently in accordance with their own national interest’ (Lee and Maguire, 2011: 850). The construction of myths, the embellishment of the past, or the inventing of tradition as described by Hobsbawm and Ranger (1983) is common in connection with Croatian and Slovenian sport (Bartoluci, 2013; Biti, 2014; Kotnik, 2009; Starc, 2006). The international successes of Slovenian skiers since the 1980s created a myth of Slovenia as a skiing nation and of alpine skiing as an original Slovenian national sport. The extent to which this mythical construction of the past contradicts descriptions of the actual past is not important to the political or ideological believability of the myth; national masses are attracted to a nationalist picture of the past (Katunarić, 2003: 178). In Slovenia, skiing is considered both a national sport and a cultural phenomenon: ‘Alpine skiing, with its natural scenery, amateurish background, sporting events, media attention, and national heroes, is one of the main sports arenas in which Slovenian nation-building, nationalism, and national identity have been exercised throughout the twentieth century’ (Kotnik, 2009: 53). Mediated through print and electronic sources, skiing attained the level of a ‘national spectacle’, a symbol of ‘Slovenianness’ and served to conceive community, invent tradition, and de/reconstruct collective memory (Biti, 2014).

Methods

This paper focuses on media interpretations of the relationship between national identity, nationalism and sport in the case of Jakov Fak ³ at four sporting events: the Biathlon World Championships in South Korea (13–22 Feb 2009) and Germany (1–11 Mar 2012), and the Olympic Games in Canada (11–18 Feb 2010) and South Korea (9–25 Feb 2018). All references (newspaper articles) to Jakov Fak have been collected and analysed from the online and print editions of the Croatian daily newspapers Jutarnji list (30), Večernji list (28) and Sportske novosti (36) and the Slovenian newspapers Dnevnik (30), Delo (40), and Ekipa (39). Jutarnji list, Večernji list, Dnevnik and Delo are quality broadsheet papers, while Sportske novosti and Ekipa are popular sports-only papers. These texts were collected from the archives of the Slovenian and Croatian national libraries. All texts published five days prior to, during, and five days after the events were analysed. The events were selected due to the timing of Jakov Fak’s success – 2009 and 2010 were his most successful seasons in which he competed for Croatia, and 2012 and 2018 were his most successful seasons competing for Slovenia. Critical discourse analysis was used to analyse coverage of these events.

Researchers use discourse analysis in media studies to investigate the ideological and political meaning underlying media texts (Lee and Maguire, 2011: 853). Critical discourse analysis is based on the idea that a text has several meanings that influence how it is interpreted. The four sporting events studied in this paper have been analysed according to Fairclough’s (1995: 53–74) three-dimensional framework for critical discourse analysis. Each of these dimensions requires a different kind of analysis: (a) text analysis (description); (b) processing analysis (interpretation); (c) social analysis (explanation). This approach will show how the Croatian and Slovenian media (print and television) represented the selected sporting events involving Jakov Fak in two socio-political contexts – Croatian and Slovenian society.

According to Alan Bairner (2015), research on the relationship between national identity and sport generally ignores the perspective of the actors themselves; that is, athletes and their coaches. Therefore, we conducted by telephone a 45-minute semi-structured interview with Jakov Fak on 20 October 2016. The main topics of the interview were the role of winter sports in Croatian and Slovenian society, the importance of sporting success for a nation and the role of national teams in sports. Also analysed were two interviews given by Jakov Fak on national television stations in Croatia (1 August 2010) and Slovenia (18 April 2018). ⁴

We explored the following questions: Who are ‘we’ and who are ‘you’? Is Jakov Fak ‘ours’ when he wins and ‘yours’ when he does not? What relationship does this case have to ethnic and civic determinants of national identity? This was done in both countries on three levels: media discourse, political discourse and the discourse of athletes themselves (e.g. Jakov Fak). Because the ‘sociology of sport has too often taken for granted concepts such as nation, nation-state, nationality, national identity and nationalism’ (Bairner, 2015: 375), this paper attempts to contribute to an understanding of the sport and national identity relationship in two relatively young nation-states, and to an understanding of the ethnic and civic nationalism relationship in different socio-political circumstances.

Different media interpretations: Jakov Fak as a Croatian biathlete

Jakov Fak is an ethnic Croat from Gorski Kotar. Due to the low public profile of biathlon in Croatia, he was completely unknown to the Croatian public when he won his first medal at the Biathlon World Championships in South Korea in 2009. The cover page of Sportske novosti on 18 February 2009 stated that the young biathlete from the town of Mrkopalj ‘shocked with his bronze medal at the world championships’ – they referred to him as a ‘Croatian miracle’, as this was Croatia’s first medal ever in biathlon, a low-profile sport in Croatia. Alongside news of Fak’s medal, there was an explanation of biathlon. Nearly a year after winning his first international medal, which created some awareness of biathlon among Croatians, Fak began training in Slovenia. Alongside mentions of Croatia’s first success in biathlon, stories in the Croatian media noted that Fak had been offered citizenship by Slovenia so he could compete for its national team. This citizenship change would occur immediately after the Olympic Games in Vancouver so that Fak could sit out an Olympic cycle and be eligible to compete for Slovenia in Sochi in 2014. However, media stories expressed doubt that the Croats would let go of Fak so easily because his success had been responsible for constructing a new Croatian biathlon centre and increasing support for Fak’s training and the development of biathlon.

Fak had stated that he wanted his success to advance biathlon in Croatia and that he would not change citizenship if the Croatian Biathlon Federation provided the support needed to improve his training, create a national team and hire the Slovenian coach, Uroš Velepec. When his conditions were not met, Fak stated:

I’m disappointed. I’ve decided 99.9% to compete for Slovenia after the Olympic Games in Vancouver. I don’t see any other solution. I know that all the [media] forums will be full, that I’ll be proclaimed a traitor, an anti-Croat, and so on, but I will go with a clear conscience. I’m going to seek my fortune. (Odločen, da bo prišel v Slovenijo, 2009)

After this statement, media coverage of Fak completely shifted from a focus on sport to a focus on patriotism. Croatian writer-journalist Boris Dežulović (2009) noted that Croatian patriots felt that Jakov Fak had ‘betrayed his homeland in the most difficult moments to ever befall the Croatian people, its power, economy, international position, and biathlon’. The author continues to describe what actually happened: ‘The homeland abandoned and betrayed Jakov Fak. Just six months after his sensational success […] Fak had been completely forgotten in Croatia.’

After winning a bronze medal at the Olympic Games in Vancouver in 2010, Fak went from media obscurity to becoming a ‘Croatian sensation’ and ‘our bronze hero in the biathlon’ (Ne želim slovensko državljanstvo, već biatlon u Hrvatskoj na višoj razini, 2010). Media commentary highlighted the importance of winning the medal for a country without a biathlon tradition or a supportive infrastructure. Also emphasised was that sport leaders should ensure that if Fak continued to win medals, he should do so for Croatia (Slišković, 2010). As a result, the coverage during the 2010 Olympic Games focused on citizenship issues instead of Fak’s commitment to training and competitive success.

The Croatian Biathlon Federation failed to take advantage of Fak’s medals to advance biathlon in Croatia and ensure better working conditions for him. His success in 2009 and the first Nordic medal in Croatian history were not used as a turning point: ‘The media sensation lasted a week. He told his story about sports fanaticism and his great desire for success, and then disappeared. The well-wishers also disappeared, as did the promises of employment in the Croatian Army or finding a sponsor’ (Poljak, 2010). Simultaneously, in the manner of the civic conception of the nation, media wrote how strongly interconnected the lives of Slovenes and Croats were, and that ‘in the most competitive area, sport, we even collaborate creatively or seek inspiration and motivation in each other’ (Tamše, 2010). However, it was also noted that Fak had not found a visible, noticeable place in the Croatian skiing world. They also note that a relevant agreement concerning sponsorship and his status in his homeland would be the easiest way to keep him from seriously considering a change in his citizenship.

Jakov himself attempted to keep the discourse in line with the ‘sporting’ spirit instead of turning it towards political issue; he persistently repeated that what was most important to him was keeping the coach and the team with whom he had attained success. Slovenian coach Velepec gave Fak space to take the decision himself; however, he did send a message to sports officials and politicians in the Croatian Biathlon Federation and the Croatian Olympic Committee in an editorial due to their failure to respect a verbal agreement:

When it happens in a top-level sport that one’s word means nothing, one should inquire into the health of that sport. Instead of our southern neighbours raising a statue in our honour for helping Jakov win a medal absolutely free, they look at us with suspicion and claim we are blackmailing them. There is no blackmail here, dear brothers. We held up our part of the agreement, now it is your turn to do your part. Simply. […] Without fair play, sport is not worth a hill of beans. RESPECT and FAIRNESS, dear neighbours, are values, like life, which are generally attributed true value. (Velepec, 2010)

After it was announced that he was transferring to the Slovenian team, Jakov Fak stated that he wanted to train with the Slovenian team but compete for Croatia. Had he stayed in Croatia, he would have been in a better financial situation; however, his motives were purely sport-related. An analysis of the discourse of this athlete shows the impossibility of a strict division between the ethnic and civic definitions of the nation. Aware of the importance of his sporting success, he added: ‘I’m sure that everyone was happy to be a Croat after I won bronze, I showed that I could give something to my country, and I was overjoyed because of that, but now I simply have to move on’ (Moji motivi su isključivo sportski, TV interview HRT, 1 August 2010).

Three weeks prior to the start of the new season and his performance at the World Championships in 2010, Fak still had not received a dismissal from the Croatian Biathlon Federation, which insisted on damages, thus making it impossible for him to compete. After this, he stated:

I no longer want to compete for Croatia. I don’t intend to compete for those who will not allow me to develop and advance in my sport. In addition to this, I’m afraid of the psychological consequences these events could leave on me. (Hebar, 2010)

Although Fak eventually received his dismissal, the media continued to speculate for some time about the true reasons for the delay, as well as about attempts by individuals in the Croatian Biathlon Federation to ‘cash in’ on his transfer. Some articles suggested that the transfer from the Croatian to the Slovenian federation bore the markings of a criminal act (Petranović, 2018). Commenting on the case of Jakov Fak for the Slovenian newspaper Dnevnik, Croatian writer-journalist Boris Dežulović stated that the Croatian media had written very little about biathlon in recent years, and that not a single article was dedicated to the brilliant success of a completely anonymous athlete who competed at the World Championships and the winter Olympic Games in a small, socially marginalised sport. ‘They only wrote about his contemplation and, finally, his decision to change his national uniform and compete for the Slovenian team’, which engendered not only angry comments from the public, but ‘his final decision to move to the Slovenian team this summer was taken as a betrayal of his nation and homeland’ of Croatia, which the author ironically describes as the ‘cradle of international biathlon’ (Dežulović, 2010).

Ours or theirs? Jakov Fak as a Slovenian biathlete

With Fak’s official transfer to the neighbouring Slovenian team in the season 2010/2011, media interest in biathlon and Fak as an athlete decreased in Croatian media. Terms such as ‘nation’, ‘ours’ and ‘traitor’ vanished from media references, and Fak and biathlon were mentioned only rarely, during large sporting events, and mostly in sporting discourse.

The two medals Fak won at the Biathlon World Championships in Germany in 2012 under the Slovenian flag – a gold medal in the individual 20km and a silver medal in the mixed relay – were reported in the Croatian media with these words:

It is hard to forget the strong desire of Mrkopalj’s most famous citizen to move over to the Slovenian flag, where they ensured him conditions that, unfortunately, he could not have even dreamed of at the Croatian Biathlon Federation. […] In the meantime, he took off his Croatian uniform, and in his new green uniform, he added a silver medal in team competition just a few days ago. (Jakov Fak svjetski prvak, 2012)

According to the definition of civic nationalism, an individual can decide which nation he or she belongs to. Through the analysed statements, Fak remained consistent to his initial opinion, which did not change despite all the complications he underwent to attain adequate sporting conditions. His statements would remain equally intoned, even after a very successful season competing under the Slovenian flag. ‘I know very well where my homeland is – it’s Croatia. I’m not and will not be sorry for the decision to compete for Slovenia. That was the best choice for me’ (Fak: Moja je zemlja Hrvatska, 2012). He also stated:

I’m not a Slovene, I’m just a Croat with a Slovenian passport! Let’s look at it like a job, like a company that has come out on a foreign market in order to succeed. Also, my Olympic bronze is still dearer to me. (Hebar, 2012)

On 8 March 2012, the team announced the news that German television station ZDF showed the Croatian flag next to Fak as he stood on the podium, a mistake that was only corrected in the afternoon. This ‘error’ was registered by the media, but it was not followed by negative commentary, which can be an indicator of the civic definition of the nation.

Slovenian media articles are dominated by civic nationalist discourse. Upon Jakov’s transfer to the Slovenian team, Delo called him ‘the best Slovenian biathlete by far’, while simultaneously referring to him as a ‘Croat on the Slovenian team’. It is interesting to note that one article suggests that Fak should be named an ambassador of friendship between Slovenia and Croatia (Kališnik, 2012).

When asked how he felt when listening to the Slovenian national anthem, Fak answered that it was a normal thing if he had decided to take Slovenian citizenship. However, he admitted that he could not have the same feelings towards the Slovenian anthem as someone born in Slovenia, and added that he respected the Slovenian anthem and state now that he competed for Slovenia. Also, he said that he had only been asked by journalists if he was a Slovene or a Croat, and not by athletes (Zdravljico se bom naučil na pamet, 2012).

Jakov Fak has enjoyed a string of successes since transferring to the Slovenian team. His most successful season in the World Championships was 2011/12. He won one medal each in 2013 and 2015 at World Championships, and his best result at the Olympic Games in Sochi was fourth place in the mass start. Despite a poor prior season due to health problems (he had to give up on numerous races in the 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons; in 2016/17 he missed the Biathlon World Championships in Austria), Jakov Fak felt completely prepared for the last winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang. He trained with his old coach Uroš Velepec, who was employed during that season as the coach for the Ukrainian women’s biathlon team.

Fak’s participation in the Olympic Games in PyeongChang was marked by a situation which Slovenian daily paper Delo said ‘turned the Slovenian selection of flag bearer into an absurd tragicomedy’ – as suggested by the title of the article itself (27 January 2018) – ‘Jakov Fak isn’t ours (any more)’ (Fak, Jakov Fak ni (več) naš, 2018). The Slovenian Olympic Committee decided to hold a public election to select the Slovenian flag bearer at the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games. The public could vote via radio station Val 202’s Facebook page for one of three candidates – hockey player Mitja Robar, cross-country skier Vesna Fabjan and biathlete Jakov Fak. According to media statements, particular negative, xenophobic comments and the opinion that it would be strange for a Croat to carry the Slovenian flag led Fak to withdraw his candidacy. He explained with the following words:

Apparently some people think I’m not appropriate for this honourable role because I wasn’t born here. I’m a Croat, and I won’t deny that, but I’m simultaneously proud to be competing for Slovenia. I’ve been disappointed to read some comments on the internet, although I know they don’t represent people’s true opinions. When sports magazine called me and asked if I felt capable for this role and who I would root for between Slovenia and Croatia, I didn’t want to make a statement, and maybe not take part in the arbitration dispute. I also want to protect my family from any unpleasantness. I’m sad, but if I’m a burden to anyone, I’d rather withdraw. (Uroševič in Vezjak, 2018)

However, a press release by the Slovenian Olympic Committed did not state exactly how many insulting comments had been posted or where they had been posted. Simultaneously, as noted in Dnevnik (Štamcar, 2018), various online surveys gave Fak a wide lead in comparison to the other candidates for flag bearer. Fak’s withdrawal of his candidacy engendered a wave of support from both public figures and the sports public in Slovenia. Despite this, Fak did not change his decision. Blaž Perko, general secretary of the Slovenian Olympic Committee, stated:

There is no room in sport for this kind of thing. Sport brings people together, not divides them. We didn’t nominate Jakov to improve Slovenian–Croatian relations, because we don’t need that in sport. Jakov is not a foreigner, he is a member of our Slovenian Olympic team, he has already won a few medals for Slovenia, and people celebrated his victory on Congress Square. (Uroševič and Verčič, 2018)

The Croatian media reported on Jakov Fak’s withdrawal as flag bearer due to these unique circumstances, calling his decision an intelligent one (Brajdić, 2018).

It is well known that sport is never only sport, as it has great social and political significance that often is amplified by the media. Articles about sport may repeat typical stereotypes about nations, sex, gender, race, etc. The borders between ‘us’ and ‘them’ are relative, and they are defined by a specific situation. Ethnicity is often the most important criterion for accepting or rejecting people, as well as an indicator of how to treat the ‘other’. Problems arise when one cannot be unambiguously labelled with an ethnic or national identity, not necessarily because cultures are incompatible, but because ideologies declare them so – in social surroundings in which it is important to have an unambiguously defined identity, it is psychologically and socially difficult to straddle the fence (Eriksen, 2004: 114–115). Despite this need for ethnically coloured nationalism, the need to choose a clear side related to one’s roots, ancestors and inborn traits, a large segment of the Slovenian public showed that it is possible to resolve and harmonise different identities without them becoming supranational.

Tomaž Ambrožič, director of SportMediaFocus and worker in the field of sports communications, has an interesting opinion:

Jakov already wears the flag on his jersey, he’s one of those we want to win medals. He’s shown a proper approach, he’s learned Slovenian, he’s become a Slovene, he has citizenship, he’s a member of the Slovenian team, and he became world champion for Slovenia. (Uroševič and Verčič, 2018)

The impression is that the pre-Olympic affair united the public and ‘that he succeeded like the greatest PR professional in turning the affair with the flag in his favour’ (Močnik, 2018). Slovenian President Borut Pahor also commented on the situation to the Slovenian Press Agency. His statement corresponds with the civic definition of the nation:

I don’t see Fak as a Croat; I see him as a member of the Slovenian team who has brought us a medal. Of course he’s a Croat, but everyone in the Slovenian representation, regardless of their origins or faith, are ours and we cheer for them. We should be open – if the Slovenian Olympic Committee thought Fak should be flag bearer, he should have taken that decision himself. When they decided that the flag bearer would be decided on over social media, they should have known there would be other opinions. There were also some unfortunate comments, but I believe Jakov made the right decision in withdrawing his candidacy to carry the flag. In the end, he won a medal, and we all respect him for that, but not only for that. (Pahor: Faka gledam kao našeg, slovenskog reprezentativca, 2018)

The Croatian media has finally stopped criticising Fak for transferring to another national team, although they still refer to him as ‘ours’. Since he transferred to the Slovenian national team, ‘he never stopped repeating that he was a Croat with a Slovenian passport, and for that reason, we celebrate every medal of his as if it were ours’ (Zrinjski, 2018: 39). Večernji list calls him ‘Jakov Fak, a Croat under the Slovenian flag’, and ‘the Slovenian Croat’, even when his results are lacklustre.

Discussion

Biathlon in Croatia is a modest sport with a nearly non-existent tradition and infrastructure. This is why Jakov Fak chose to take the citizenship of the neighbouring state of Slovenia, where he had opportunities to improve and enjoy more success in biathlon. Everything the Croatian Olympic Committee and the Croatian Biathlon Federation attempted to provide so that Fak would stay and compete for Croatia was in response to public pressure (scholarships, employment in the military, a sponsored car). This changed his transfer from a sports and business issue into a political and national issue, but this was not enough to keep him in Croatia. Fak knew that results in biathlon are greatly dependent on working conditions, one’s team, and one’s coach. He says that biathlon coaches are equally important as the competitors: ‘If you don’t have a good programme, if you don’t have someone to correct your errors, you can be as talented as you like, but you won’t do much’ (Beluhan, 2009). It is important to note that biathlon is supported by national teams, not clubs, making national competition even more important. Fak comments:

My entire case got negative connotations because the competitions take place on the level of the national team – we don’t have club races or club matches like some do. […] In biathlon, the national team is everything, because if you aren’t on the national team, you can’t make a living off the sport, you can’t be a professional biathlete, only an amateur, and you can’t make a living like that. (personal communication, 20 October 2016)

Despite the insufficient exposure of biathlon in Croatian media, a sport that Croats consider ‘something silly you see on Eurosport, something like truck races or the caber toss’ (Dežulović, 2009), a low-profile sport that would create a great controversy and become more visible because of the issue of national identity. Bairner (2009) states that sport today, likely more than any other form of social event in the modern world, makes it easier to wave the flag and listen to the national anthem. Sport has always been a means by which to build and affirm identity, as well as nationalism. Sporting success and the presence of national symbols like anthems or flags can awaken national feelings even among the entirely apolitical population, because “even the least political or public individuals can identify with the nation as symbolized by young persons excelling at what practically every man wants, or at one time in life has wanted, to be good at.” (Hobsbawm, 1990: 143).

The case of Jakov Fak confirms this. The pressures to which this athlete was exposed on multiple occasions were related to issues of national identification and the conception of nationalism. Even though he has remained equally measured and clear, he expressly provides a definition of the civic conception of the nation:

I must say that it is difficult for me to choose, different than in the real situation. I was born in Croatia. At the age of twenty, a bit later, I joined the Slovenian biathlon team, I got Slovenian citizenship. Technically speaking, I’m just as Slovenian as someone who was born here and has citizenship. If you look at the real situation, I’m a Croat who competes for Slovenia. (‘Od blizu’ TV show, RTV Slovenia, 18 April 2018)

His case highlights the relevance of national identity and nationalism. First, he turned from an ‘inadequate Croat’ into a Slovenian. Then, after the affair with bearing the Slovenian flag at the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games in PyeongChang, out of an ‘inadequate Slovenian’, ‘he unintentionally became a kind of bridge – a supranational symbol, a chance to overcome nationalism and xenophobia’ (Od blizu, 2018).

An analysis of media statements on the four most successful sporting events in Jakov Fak’s career point to the existence of a thin line between ethnic and civic nationalism. It seems that, despite sensationalism and the desire of specific media outlets to raise the issue of the nation and nationalism, and thus increase their circulation (and their profit), Billig’s (1995) theory on the existence of banal, cold and hot nationalism proves to be true in this case. What makes this case interesting is the reaction of a large segment of the Slovenian public – private individuals, public figures, and even politicians against xenophobic messages (posted on social media) ⁵ directed at Fak and the withdrawal of his candidacy for flag bearer. For instance, Slovenian football club Maribor posted the following on social media: ‘If you give your heart for this flag, you’re our #SlovenianHero #TogetherUnified’ (Maribor poslal fantastično sporočilo podpore Jakovu Faku, 2018). When searching newspaper content, it is nearly impossible to find xenophobic messages directed at Jakov Fak. On the other hand, according to Janez Ožbolt from the Slovenian Skiing Federation, Fak received two strange telephone calls, following which he decided to withdraw his candidacy for flag bearer (Kavčić, 2018).

Surveys published on Slovenian online portals showed that public support of Fak rose sharply after he withdrew his candidacy. The transition from ethnic to civic nationalism is especially interesting – from Jakov as a ‘non-Slovenian’, the ‘ethnic other’, and an ‘outsider’ to a ‘Slovenian athlete’, ‘our Jakov’, the leader of the Slovenian biathlon team, and an ‘insider’.

Conclusion

Jakov Fak is not the only Croatian athlete to have taken another country’s passport in search of better conditions; there are cases in swimming, football, water polo, etc. The same situation is also typical of Slovenia, as well as numerous other nation-states. The discourse analysis of the first two events, the Biathlon World Championships in 2009 and the Olympic Games in 2010, show that the case of Jakov Fak did not reach the level of moral panic, but that the public was provoked by and exposed to national symbolism in multiple ways, especially in political discourse. The media discourse did change during the third and fourth events, the Biathlon World Championships in 2012 and the 2018 Olympic Games, and discourse typical of civic nationalism began to dominate.

Analysing media content, the impression is that Fak’s success in Croatian society truly lasted ‘as long as the flowers you get at the awards ceremony’ (personal communication, 20 October 2016) – by the time the flowers had wilted, media interest in biathlon and Croatia’s most successful biathlete had disappeared. ‘After Jakov Fak transferred to Slovenia, Croatian biathlon returned to where it had been beforehand – on the margins’ (Beluhan, 2018: 15). Only Jakov Fak’s discourse as an athlete remained consistent, defining national identity as an important form of identification, but in the sense of civic nationalism and respect for the symbols, traditions, and territories of the nation-state one is competing for. As Jakov Fak stated:

Just performing for the national team is a feeling of pride and a feeling of belonging to a broader community, […] when an athlete puts on the national team jersey, he feels a kind of obligation not only to himself to do his best and represent the nation he comes from, but to the state and all other people, his friends, neighbours, fans, etc. (personal communication, 20 October 2016)

A discourse analysis of Slovenian media showed that it was mostly oriented towards the civic definition of the nation on all three levels of analysis – political discourse, media discourse and the discourse of athletes.

This paper contributes to an understanding of the relationship between sport, national identity and the media, and to an understanding of political discourse and the discourse of the actors themselves – the athlete and his coach, as suggested in Alan Bairner’s (2015) future directions for the sociology of sport. In this case as well, it has been shown that national identity and nationalism are not fixed, immutable categories. Their significance changes depending on socio-political circumstances and events on the broader social scene – as Anthony Smith (1991: 79) says, ‘chameleon-like, nationalism takes its colour from its context’. Ethnic and civic forms are ideal types of nationalism, usually mixed in the social world. The triangle of national identity, media and sport must be further studied. Sport and sporting events not only provide insight into events and value systems in society – they show the potential of sport as a communications channel and a means by which to attain social change. Speaking with the athlete himself, it can be concluded that Jakov Fak is both ‘ours’ and ‘theirs’ – both a Croatian and Slovenian biathlete who will say that everyone is exceptionally proud when someone wins a medal, because they equate themselves to the winner and

transfer that positive result to themselves – this is what we did, as a community. […] Sport as a part of society or athletes as a part of society can contribute positively to the very feeling of society and do something positive after all. (personal communication, 20 October 2016)