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Czechoslovakia – Gymnastics History

Category: Czechoslovakia

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1952 Bulgaria Czechoslovakia Hungary MAG WAG

1952: A Tri Meet between Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary

In the April of 1952, two of the world’s gymnastics powerhouses—Hungary and Czechoslovakia—faced off during Hungary’s Liberation Day competition. The Hungarian men’s and women’s teams emerged victorious. 

But the pre-Olympics rivalry didn’t end there. Weeks later, the two nations met again, this time in Prague, with Bulgaria joining the fray for a tri-nation showdown. Once again, Hungary reigned supreme, besting Czechoslovakia in a decisive repeat performance.

On the women’s side, the ongoing duel between Hungarian stars Ágnes Keleti and Margit Korondi continued, with Keleti winning the all-around—one more twist in a season-long back-and-forth between the two. But it was on the men’s side that perhaps the biggest revelation emerged: Bulgaria’s Stoyan Koev surprised the competition by claiming second place in the all-around.

Agnes Keleti, 1956
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1952 Czechoslovakia MAG WAG

1952: The Results of the Czechoslovak National Championships

By May of 1952, when Czechoslovakia held its national championships, the writing was on the wall: Czechoslovakia’s once-dominant women’s gymnastics team was no longer the force it had been four years prior. At the Helsinki Olympics, the defending Olympic champions wouldn’t be the ones to beat. At best, they would be the third-best team. (During Hungary’s Liberation Day competition in April, the Czechoslovak women took second to the Hungarian women, whom the Soviet Union had defeated during a dual meet.)

The Czechoslovak men’s team still had its stalwarts in 1952. The country’s two Olympic medalists from London 1948 were still in the mix. Zdeněk Růžička, a bronze medalist on rings and floor in London, took home the rings title at the 1952 national championships in Humpolec. Meanwhile, Leo Sotorník, who had tied for bronze on vault in 1948, soared to gold on his signature event in the lead-up to Helsinki.

Below, you can find the results of the 1952 national championships. Unfortunately, the newspapers of the time did not add much commentary about the competition.

Ferdinand Daniš, via GYMmedia
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1952 Czechoslovakia Hungary MAG WAG

1952: Hungary’s Liberation Day Competition

In 1952, Hungary hosted its Liberation Day competition, a pivotal event for gymnasts vying for a spot in the upcoming Helsinki Olympics. For Hungarian athletes, the competition was more than just a national day to remember the end of German occupation; it was another qualifying meeting for the Helsinki Olympics,* and on the women’s side, the spotlight was once again on the contest between two of Hungary’s brightest stars — Ágnes Keleti or Margit Korondi. The pair flip-flopped in the all-around rankings throughout 1952.

For Czechoslovakia, the event offered a chance to measure their progress against Hungary, another European powerhouse. Hungary’s men had taken third place at the 1948 London Olympics, while the Hungarian women had settled for second, just behind Czechoslovakia’s gold medalists. Would Czechoslovakia be able to hold off Hungary again in Helsinki? (Spoiler alert: No.)

The following are the results of the competition, as reported in Hungary’s national press at the time. (Sources: Népsport, April 6 and 7, 1952)

Margit Korondi (HUN)

*Note: Some newspaper reports include this event as one of Hungary’s qualifying rounds for their Olympic team while others do not.

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1968 Books Czechoslovakia Olympics

Čáslavská on Defending Her All-Around Title in The Road to Olympus

What’s it like to try to defend your Olympic all-around title? At the time of this writing, only two female gymnasts have done it: Larisa Latynina (1956, 1960) and Věra Čáslavská (1964, 1968). Many are betting that Simone Biles will become the third.

Below, I’ve translated a portion of Čáslavská’s The Road to Olympus (1972), in which Čáslavská recalled her quest to defend her all-around title in Mexico City. She discussed everything from the inane questions of journalists to rivalries to intimidation tactics to nerves to bad lighting in arenas to difficulty adjusting to the bars during podium training.

Enjoy this excerpt from her book!

Czech Vera Caslavska performs her routine on the beam at the Olympic Games in Mexico, on October 23 1968. The Czech gymnast won the all around individual title in gymnastics competition in Mexico City. Vera Caslavska, one of the most titled gymnast switched from ice skating to gymnastics as a 15 year-old, and went on to win 22 Olympic, World and European titles. She won three Olympic gold medals in 1964, and four in 1968. (Photo by – / EPU / AFP) (Photo by -/EPU/AFP via Getty Images)
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1974 Czechoslovakia Interviews & Profiles WAG World Championships

1974: Božena Perdykulová and Her “Vault to Glory”

For over three decades Czechoslovakia was a powerhouse in the world of women’s artistic gymnastics. From 1936 until 1968, Czechoslovak women’s artistic gymnasts always won at least one medal at the Olympics, and, except for 1950, from 1934 to 1970, they won at least one medal at the World Championships. (Czechoslovakia did not attend the 1950 World Championships.)

In 1972, that streak ended. No Czechoslovak gymnast won a medal in Munich, which led to much soul-searching.

Two years later, at the 1974 World Championships, the winds of fortune changed, and Czechoslovakia was on the podium once again. Božena Perdykulová, a newcomer to the international stage, came to Varna with an impressive Tsukahara and won a bronze medal.

Because Perdykulová is relatively unknown to English-speaking gymnastics fans, I translated two articles about her, as well as an article about the place where she trained.

Stadión, no. 51, 1974
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1974 Czechoslovakia WAG

1974: Czechoslovakia’s Plans for Uneven Bars

From 1936 until 1968, the Czechoslovak women’s artistic gymnasts always won at least one medal at the Olympics. In 1972, that streak ended. In 1974, the leadership of the Czechoslovak women’s team was wondering how to return to its golden age. According to the article below, one potential solution was to improve on uneven bars. In particular, they were hoping to find something unique and extraordinary on the apparatus — similar to what Korbut brought to bars in 1972.

Interestingly, the article points out that Korbut was not the only gymnast to train the salto release on bars. Czechoslovak gymnast Bohumila Římnáčová had trained the same skill but couldn’t master it. 

One final tidbit: It should be noted that the article leaves out an important detail in its historiography. At the 1934 World Championships, teams had a choice of uneven bars or parallel bars. The Czechoslovak team was the only team to choose uneven bars. In effect, it was the Czechoslovak women’s team that introduced uneven bars to FIG competitions.

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1973 Czechoslovakia WAG

1973: Stodůlková’s Double Back on Floor

At the inaugural Moscow News competition in 1974, Yelena Abramova became the first woman to do a double back at a large international competition. (You can see a video here.) But she was not the first gymnast to perform the skill.

In 1973, Renata Stodůlková made headlines when she performed the skill at Czechoslovakia’s trials for the European Championships, and though Stodůlková did not compete at the 1973 European Championships, her double back on floor was a big topic of conversation in London that year.

What follows is a translation of the newspaper article about Stodůlková’s double back.

Renata Stodůlková, 1971 – Source: Vlasta, No. 38, 1971
Adolfína Tkačíková-Tačová and Renata Stodůlková, 1967 – Source: Vlasta, No. 35, 1967

Note: If you’re a long-time gymnastics fan, you may have heard of Stodůlková’s double back, but the details have largely been forgotten over the years.

It’s important to recognize moments like this in gymnastics history because progress in women’s artistic gymnastics is often seen through a Soviet lens. The contributions of gymnasts from other countries are often overlooked, and, as I mentioned above, Stodůlková’s double back did capture the attention of the European gymnastics community in 1973 — even if she performed the skill only domestically.

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Czechoslovakia Interviews & Profiles MAG

1974: A Profile of Miloslav Netušil – “One of Many”

Before Simone Biles had a kidney stone at the 2018 World Championships, there was Miloslav Netušil of Czechoslovakia. But unlike Biles, who went on to win six medals in Doha, Netušil had to seek medical treatment in the middle of the 1972 Olympic Games. He posted a 54.50 during compulsories and had to withdraw before the second day of the men’s competition (optionals). As a result, the Czechoslovak team was forced to finish the team competition with only five team members.

Below, you can find a short profile of Netušil, who was a three-time Olympian (1968, 1972, and 1976). He died earlier this year.

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1973 1974 Czechoslovakia Interviews & Profiles WAG

1973: A Profile of Zdena Dorňáková, the 14-Year-Old Czechoslovak Champion

In 1972, Zdena Dorňáková won the all-around at the Czechoslovak National Championships when she was only 14. She finished 27th in the all-around at the Munich Olympics, suffered an injury right before the 1973 European Championships, and finished 19th in the all-around at the 1974 World Championships in Varna.

Because she won the national title at such a young age, she was a source of fascination in the Czechoslovak media in the early 1970s, and she was portrayed as the gymnast who might rehabilitate Czechoslovak gymnastics. Below, you’ll find a 1973 profile of her, as well as a 1974 interview.

A topic of interest: The tension between the capital and the peripheral gyms. This was not a uniquely Czechoslovak problem. For instance, it was a challenge for Swiss gymnasts, as well.

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1973 Czechoslovakia WAG

1973: Czechoslovakia Restructures the WAG Program after Munich

From 1936 until 1968, Czechoslovak women’s artistic gymnasts always won at least one medal at the Olympics. In 1972, that streak ended. It led to Czechoslovakia reorganizing its training, creating a more centralized training system with Vít Matlocha at the helm. The coaches’ goal: find a way to recreate Korbut’s magic in Czechoslovakia.

Reminder: Jaroslava Matlochová, who was Čáslavská’s coach at the end of her career, had left to coach in Italy. After Munich, she returned to Czechoslovakia to lead the women’s program with her husband.

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