B

Bogdan Norčič

Died
April 4, 2004
Age
50 years

About Bogdan Norčič

Bogdan Norčič was a notable figure. Norčič died in 2004 at the age of 50.

Explore other notable deaths in 2004 or deaths in April 2004.

Advertisement

60 Seconds Life Story

Bogdan Norčič was a courageous Yugoslavian ski jumper who soared into history as the first person to cross the

60 Seconds Life Story

Bogdan Norčič

d. 2004

0:00 / 1:07

60 Seconds: Bogdan Norčič's Life Story

1:08Added 2026-10-27Generated

A documentary short on the life and career of Yugoslavian Olympic ski jumper Bogdan Norčič.

Transcript

Bogdan Norčič was a courageous Yugoslavian ski jumper who soared into history as the first person to cross the 180-meter barrier. Born in Kranj in 1953, he dedicated his career to the exhilarating sport of professional ski jumping. He proudly represented Yugoslavia at the Winter Olympics in both 1976 and 1980. His most legendary moment came in 1977 at the Planica ski flying hill. Norčič reached an incredible distance of 181 meters, marking a new world record distance. Unfortunately, because he could not land safely, the historic achievement remained unofficial. After a remarkable life as a pioneering athlete, he passed away in 2004 at the age of fifty. His daring spirit remains a landmark chapter in the long and storied history of international ski flying.

Play the illustrated life story above, or read the full biography on this page.

Visual credits: Scan from the MatchboxPosters vintage matchbox label collection (Public domain)source · Google Arts & Culture — kranj/DwFLKk_5X8pojg (Public domain)source · originally posted to Flickr as _MG_4720 (CC BY 2.0)source · Planica (CC BY 2.0)source · NickyPe / Pixabay (Pixabay Content License)source · Generated illustration by The Deaths Archive (Generated illustration, not a photograph)source · Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0)source

An illustrated presentation assembled inside the archive from the approved script and the credited images: narration, scene transitions and captions. Caption timing is estimated from the narration.

Narrated illustration. Images are sourced and credited; they are not presented as authenticated photographs.

Full Biography

|

Bogdan Norčič (19 September 1953, Kranj – 4 April 2004, Cerklje na Gorenjskem) was a Yugoslavian ski jumper of Slovene ethnicity. He competed at the 1976 and 1980 Winter Olympics.

Career

On 20 March 1977, Norčič crashed during an attempt at the world record for longest ski jump. Although he soared a world record distance of 181 metres (594 ft) from Velikanka bratov Gorišek K165 in Planica in Yugoslavia, the feat was not official because he failed to land safely. The same distance would be achieved as an official record, in 1983, by Pavel Ploc at Harrachov, and would be exceeded by Matti Nykänen at Oberstdorf in 1990.

World Cup

Standings

Invalid ski jumping world record

This was the first ever ski jump over 180 metres in history.

  Not recognized! Crash at world record distance.

Content from Wikipedia — licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

Videos about Bogdan Norčič

"Bogdan Norčič - Planica 1977 - 181 m - World record crash"

Open on YouTube

Embedded from YouTube; the archive does not host these recordings.

Books & Media

Find books, audiobooks and films about Bogdan Norčič on Amazon.

Available at Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

Sources

People who died on April 4

Spotted an error?

Help us keep the archive accurate. Report a correction with a source.

Report an error for Bogdan Norčič →

Advertisement

We use cookies for analytics (Google Analytics 4 and PostHog) and advertising (Google AdSense) to understand site usage and improve your experience. By clicking "Accept All", you consent to the use of these cookies. See our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy for details.