Here are the most famous Czech Medalists from Summer Olympics from the past century until the present, from the times of independent Czechoslovakia all the way to the modern day Czech Republic!
Table of Contents
Most Famous Czech Medalists from Summer Olympics
Bedřich Šupčík
Czechoslovakia won its first Olympic gold medal in 1924 in Paris thanks to Bedřich Šupčík, born in 1898. At the age of 26, he became part of the artistic gymnastics team representing Czechoslovakia at the Olympic games in Paris. He became an accomplished sportsman despite his handicap – severe myopy.
Věra Čáslavská
Věra Čáslavská was a Czech artistic gymnast with several dozens of international titles. She became a celebrity due to her participation in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico city where she not only dominated the gymnastics field but also made one brave gesture that ended her active professional career. Read more in Věra Čáslavská, Queen of Gymnastics.
Jarmila Kratochvílová
Kratochvílová is a runner of short and middle-length trails, holder of many national and international titles such as double World Champion and silver medalist from the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.
The author of 42 national records retired in 1987 and started coaching. She coached the World Champions Ludmila Formanová and Hana Benešová.
Jana Novotná
Jana Novotná was one of the world-elite tennis players, a Wimbledon champion (1998) and a triple Summer Olympics medalist (Seoul in 1988 and Atlanta in 1996).
Photo: John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA – Jana Novotna, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=76508835
Emil Zátopek
This legendary long-distance runner nicknamed “Czech Locomotive” is known especially for his triple victory at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki (although he previously won one gold medal at the 1948 Olympics in London). Creating 18 world records and winning the best athlete poll three times, Zátopek was one of the first 12 personalities to be in the IAAF Hall of Fame.
In 2021, the director David Ondříček made a movie about his life called simply Zátopek.
Dana Zátopková
Dana Zátopková was, just like her husband Emil Zátopek, a Czech Olympics medalist. Her discipline was javelin throw, winning one gold medal at the OG in Helsinki in 1952 and one silver medal at the OG in Rome in 1960.
She is also a 13-times National Champion and she is also the last athlete to create a world record throwing a wooden javelin.
Jan Železný
Železný (whose surname means “iron”) is a gold medalist from the Summer Olympic games in Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000 and the same amount of World Champion titles in javelin throw. He also won a silver medal at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul.
He retired from his active career after winning a bronze medal at the European Championship in Göteborg in 2006.
Photo: https://www.mb-net.cz/jan-zelezny/
Štěpánka Hilgertová
Štěpánka Hilgertová is a 7-times world champion in canoe slalom and double Olympic gold medalist in the same discipline from the OG in Atlanta in 1996 and Sydney in 2000.
Photo: https://budejcka.drbna.cz/
Lukáš Pollert
Although a medical doctor now, Pollert became well-known for winning a gold medal in Canoe slalom at the Olympics in Barcelona in 1992 and a silver medal in Atlanta in 1996. He also has several silver and bronze medals from the World and European Championship.
Photo: https://www.vsc.cz/
Tomáš Dvořák
Dvořák is a Czech combined track and field events athlete. Although he has only one bronze medal from the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996, he became famous for his many national athletics victories and several international ones, such as the gold medal in heptathlon from the 2000 European Athletics Indoor Championship in Gent.
Photo: https://www.sinslavyceskeatletiky.cz/
Šárka Kašpárková
Same like Tomáš Dvořák, Šárka Kašpárková has one Olympic bronze medal in her discipline triple jump which she won in 1996 in Atlanta. She is much more accomplished when it comes to national titles (several gold medals at Czech Republic Championships). She also won a gold medal at the World Championship in Athens in 1997.
Martin Doktor
Martin Doktor won two Olympic gold medals in Canoe slalom at the Games in Atlanta in 1996 and 14 medals at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in the years 1997 – 2003.
Photo: Josef Doktor
Roman Šebrle
Current TV personality, forever gold medalist in combined track and field events from the OG in Athens in 2004. Roman Šebrle also holds several dozen national and international medals, let’s mention some of the gold medals: 2007 IAAF World Championship in Ósaka, European Athletics Championships in Munich and Göteborg in 2002 and 2006.
Photo: Erik van Leeuwen
Kateřina Emmons
Emmons won a gold medal in 10 m shooting at the Summer Olympics in 2008 in Beijing, silver in 10 m shooting and a bronze medal at the 2004 OG in Athens. She also holds gold, silver and bronze medals from World and European Championships in the years 2002 – 2007.
Photo: Petr Novák, Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5
Barbora Špotáková
Barbora Špotáková is another brilliant Czech javelin thrower. She won two Olympic golds in Beijing in 2008 and in London in 2012. Besides that, she is a World Champion from 2007 Ósaka, 2011 Daegu and 2017 London and she holds several other international and national titles.
Photo: Petr Novák, Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5
Lukáš Krpálek
Lukáš is a judoist and winner of two Olympic gold medals – 2016 Rio de Janeiro and 2020 Tokio. Moreover, he won gold at the Worls championships in 2014 and 2019 and silver and bronze in 3 other years. He holds 6 medals from the European championships 2013 – 2021, three of them gold.
Photo: Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58229049
Petra Kvitová
Petra Kvitová is one of the best internationally known Czech tennis players. Although her only Olympic medal is a bronze one from Women’s singles from Rio de Janeiro in 2016, she is a famous Czech medalist, even though more famous for other accomplishments. There are many but let’s name the most significant ones – 2011 and 2014 Wimbledon victory, 2011 ITF World Champion in Women’s Doubles.
Photo: Peter Menzel – Petra Kvitova, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=72874989
Barbora Krejčíková
The 2024 Wimbledon winner also has an Olympic gold in Women’s Doubles from Tokio 2020. And she is a WTA Finals champion from 2021.
Photo: Hameltion, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons