Radovis

(Macedonian: Радовиш)

Radovish is a city positioned in the southeastern part of the Republic of Macedonia. The city is a seat of the Radovis municipality, which is spread on the bottom of mountain Plackovica and the northern part of the Strumica valley. The main road Stip - Strumica is tangentially placed on the township of Radovis. This road is a main communication route with other parts of the country.

The area of the municipality is 497,48 km². Radovis municipality has 28,244 inhabitants, according to the last census (2002). Population density is 56/km². It is populated mainly with Macedonians and partly with Turkish minority. In the Municipality of Radovis ethnic conflicts and intolerance are unknown.

36 villages are also part of the municipality of Radovis. The Major of Radoviš is Dr. Robert Velkov, MD.

According to the census performed in 2002, the population of the Municipality of Radovis is 28,244, of which in the city live 16,223 inhabitants.

The ethnic structure of the population living in the city is: Macedonians: 13,991 (86.24%), Turks: 1,927

Gypsies: 181, Serbs: 60, Vlachs: 20, Albanians: 1 and others: 42

• Number of inhabitants: 28.244, Radovis itself 16.223
• Area: 497,48 sq. km
• Geographic position: 41.6383° N 22.4647° E
• Climate: Mediterranean-continental, with 112 sunny days,
• Average temperature:
• Time zone: Central European Time (GMT +1)
• Postal Code: 2420
• Local area code: 032

After the settlement of the Slavs, during the rule of Samuil, Radovis became a business centre while the medieval town of Konce was a monastery and bishop centre. As a settlement and a regional town parish, Radovis is mentioned for the first time in the deed of the Byzantine emperor Vasilij II in 1019. At that time, the town was located in the North-West of the town's present location, on the banks of the Old river, where we can find traces of several churches; for example St. Archangel church.

In the 14th century, after the destruction of the Byzantine Empire, Radovis found itself in the Serb medieval state. In 1361, the tsar Uros sojourned in Radovis. During the Ottoman Empire, in the 17th Century under the Kyustendil sanjak, it belonged to the diocese of the Kustendil metropolitan. At that time, the town had 3,000-4,000 inhabitants.

The people in Radovis, especially its youngest inhabitants, like sports. Favorite sports are soccer and basketball. Radovis has its own soccer club "Jaka".

In the past and now, Radovis rightly carries the attribute of a "sport city". It can freely be called "The metropolis of wrestling in free and Greco-Roman style" in Europe and worldwide after Radovis's favorite club BK "Bucim-Jaka" won the titles "European Club Champion in 1995" and "World Club Champion in 1996". The final competition for those titles as well as for many other tournaments such as "Balkan Championship in Wrestling, Free and Greco-Roman Style" 1991 and "Macedonian Pearl" were held in the Sport Center in Radovis "25 Maj".

Beside the existing sport facilities, a sport center with basketball courts, table tennis facility, handball court, gym and the soccer fields and the swimming pool. The new sport center has an Olympic swimming pool, small swimming pool, tennis courts, handball court, basketball court and a restaurant.