Czech wrestler Vítězslav Mácha, Olympic champion from the 1972 Munich Games and silver medalist from the 1976 Montreal Games, died on Monday at the age of 75. He reported the death on the website Czech Olympic Committee.
As a small boy, Mácha tried a number of sports with success in his native Krmelín, for example he excelled in chess. However, he completely found himself in the match, which he began to devote himself to in Vítkovice. In 1965, he moved to Baník Ostrava.
In the same year, he became the junior champion of Czechoslovakia in both classical wrestling and freestyle. However, he himself later preferred Greco-Roman wrestling, almost his entire career he wrestled in the welterweight category up to 74 kg. He appeared on the international stage at the 1967 European Championship in Minsk. The following year in Västeras, Sweden, he already fought for a medal and earned a nomination for the XIX. 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico.
In 1971, Mácha won a heavily contested tournament in Budapest and began to be ranked among the world’s best in his weight category. However, a broken rib did not allow him to confirm his reputation at the World Championships in Sofia. The same injury also affected his performance at the European Championship in Katowice, where he was unable to participate in the final due to great pain. Nevertheless, his bronze medal raised hopes for XX. 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.
However, the introduction to the Olympic mat was disastrous after the flu. In the first round, he faced Bulgarian Ivan Kolev and lost. According to the rules, another defeat would mean elimination from the competition. However, Macha managed to fight until the end. “I didn’t see my opponent, only blurred spots, I didn’t even notice the referee raising his hand, I don’t even know how I stumbled into the dressing room.” In the final, in which he wrestled with a Greek wrestler, he won on points 5:3. Czechoslovakia thus won the first Olympic gold medal in the match.
He then confirmed the status of the best classical wrestler in the weight class up to 74 kg throughout the 70s and managed to become a two-time world champion.
He ended his racing career, accompanied by a battle with his weight and numerous injuries, with sixth place at the XXII. 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. However, he continued to play, as he coached the Czechoslovak national team in Greco-Roman wrestling between 1980 and 1984.
In 1981, he received the Pierre de Coubertin Fair Play Award from UNESCO, one of the legendary French tennis musketeers, Jean Borotra. That is why he was elected a member of the executive committee of the Czechoslovak Olympic Committee in 1990. After the division of Czechoslovakia, he led the Wrestling Association of the Czech Republic in the period 1993–96. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2019.
2023-05-29 18:32:00
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