the opposition knowing what they were saying, unless, of course, they also understood Slovak. Following the successful years for the Slovaks in the early 2000s at the World Championship, when they won the silver in St. Petersburg at the 2000 edition after a loss to the Czechs, winning the (so far) only title in Goteburg at the 2002 edition and securing bronze in Helsinki (2003), the results of Slovakia worsened and Slovakia began to drop out in the quarterfinals. The closest Slovakia came to relegation into Division I was in 2008, when they avoided relegation only thanks to two victories over Slovenia in the Relegation Round. Following was a series of three subsequent eliminations in the qualifying round (round of 12), including one at a 2011 edition Slovakia hosted in Bratislava and Košice for the first time, since the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. Largely unexpected, however, was Slovakia's silver medal at the 2012 edition, again won in Helsinki. This was the first tournament after the introduction of the new two group format, followed by the quarterfinals. Due to the surprise this medal was after number of unsuccessful tournaments, it was by many regarded as with a value of a triumphal gold. In the following years however, Slovakia again failed to repeat medal successes and even failed to qualify to the quarterfinals, with the exception of 2013. In the Winter Olympic Games, Slovakia's highest achievement prior to 2022 was fourth place in Vancouver 2010. In the tournament they won against favourites Russia and Sweden, and lost against Canada in the semi-finals and against Finland in the bronze medal game. In 2022, the Slovaks claimed their first ever Olympic medal after defeating Sweden 4–0 in a bronze medal game. Tournament record Olympic Games World Championship Lower divisions Top division World Cup At the 2016 edition, Slovakia was not represented. Instead 6 Slovak players were a part of Team Europe, which was led by Slovak general manager Miroslav Šatan. Deutschland Cup Gold medal (1997, 2006, 2011, 2016) Silver medal (1994, 2001, 2017, 2021) Bronze medal (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2014, 2018) Team Current roster Roster for the 2022 IIHF World Championship. Head coach: Craig Ramsay 2002 World Championship: Gold winning roster 2012 World Championship 2022 Winter Olympics Player statistics Source: Players in bold are still active. Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; GPG = Goal per game; Head coaches