He ranks among the many icons of the Czech sports activities world. Because the proprietor of 11 Olympic medals, she definitely has the suitable to take action. Nevertheless, the lifetime of the sports activities star was not a stroll within the rose backyard, because it may appear.
The best way to the highest
Vera Čáslavská was born on Might 3, 1942 in German-occupied Prague. She had two older sisters, Breathe a Eve. Her father was a businessman, he owned a small delicatessen. Mom was a housewife.
Whilst slightly lady, Věra was a gifted and passionate athlete. She attended ballet, determine skating and, in fact, gymnastics.
She at all times dreamed of a shiny sports activities profession. She began fulfilling this dream at solely 14 years outdated. Then, as a young person, she met one other star of the world of gymnastics, an Olympic champion and world champion, Eva Bosáková.
This assembly decided the subsequent route of Věra’s life and sports activities journey. Bosáková took Čáslavská beneath her teaching wing, and as an athlete effectively versed in gymnastics, she started to assist Věra on her method to the highest.
Only one yr later, Věra took half within the nationwide championship for youngsters and juniors, which she gained simply, and the next yr she went to the world championship in Moscow, the place she completed second along with her crew.
A tyrant husband
Various different profitable placements adopted, comparable to second place on the Czechoslovakian Championship or first place in vault and beam on the European Championship in Krakow in 1959.
Gymnastics icon Věra Čáslavská:
Supply: Youtube
In the identical yr, Čáslavská discovered a brand new coach, Vladimir the Prophet. It was he who was behind her preparation and success on the Olympic Video games in Rome in 1960, the place she gained a good looking second place.
The true milestone in her profession was the Olympics in Tokyo in 1964. Věra shone within the Japanese capital. She simply gained the all-around, vault and beam. She gained second place within the crew competitors.
Because of this success, she grew to become synonymous with the usually harsh world of gymnastics and a world-renowned athlete.
However as they are saying, each coin has two sides. Whereas within the sports activities world she skilled one success after one other, in personal she suffered and skilled hell. Her husband was typically aggressive in direction of Čáslavská and abused Věra mentally and bodily.
It bought up to now that certainly one of her sons, Martin, bought right into a struggle along with his father at a discotheque in 1993, and the implications have been deadly. Věra Čáslavská’s husband died. Martin was convicted of homicide, however ultimately pardoned by the then president Vaclav Havel missed out.
Sources: www.pametnaroda.cz, www.krajskelisty.cz, www.sport.cz
