Jakub Vadlejch (; born 10 October 1990) is a Czech

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete who competes in the

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the ...

. He is a three-time Olympian for the Czech Republic, having competed in 2012, 2016 and 2020, winning a silver medal in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

. He also has represented his country six times at the

World Championships in Athletics The World Athletics Championships (until 2019 known as the World Championships in Athletics) are a biennial athletics competition organized by World Athletics (formerly IAAF, International Association of Athletics Federations). Alongside the Ol ...

(2011, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2023), winning the bronze medal in 2022 and 2023 and silver medal in 2017, and six times a competitor at the

European Athletics Championships The European Athletics Championships is a biennial (from 2010) athletics event organised by the European Athletics Association and is recognised as the elite continental outdoor athletics championships for Europe. Editions First held, for men ...

(2010, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2022 and 2024), winning the silver medal in 2022 and the gold medal in 2024. He also won the

2016 IAAF Diamond League The 2016 Diamond League was the seventh season of the annual series of outdoor track and field meetings, organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The 2016 series saw three changes to the format. One of the two ...

title.

Career

Born in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, Vadlejch took part in international javelin competitions from a young age, reaching the finals at the

2007 World Youth Championships in Athletics The 2007 World Youth Championships in Athletics were the fifth edition of the IAAF World Youth Championships in Athletics. They were held on 11–15 July 2007 in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Results Boys Girls Medals table See also ...

2008 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2008 World Junior Championships in Athletics is the 2008 version of the World Junior Championships in Athletics. It was held in Bydgoszcz in Poland at the Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak Stadium between 8 and 13 July 2008. Previously Bydgoszcz hosted t ...

and the

2009 European Athletics Junior Championships The 20th European Athletics Junior Championships were held between 23 and 26 July 2009 in the Stadion Karađorđe in Novi Sad, Serbia. Germany topped the medal table with 25 medals overall, including 10 golds, ahead of Russia and Ukraine. Medal ...

. His senior debut followed at the

2010 European Athletics Championships The 2010 European Athletics Championships were the 20th edition of the European Athletics Championships, organised under the supervision of the European Athletic Association. They were held at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona, Cat ...

, where he threw in qualifying only. He competed in the

at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and placed 25th with a mark of 77.61 metres. He was eliminated in the qualifying round at the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in th ...

2014 European Athletics Championships The 2014 European Athletics Championships was held in Zürich, Switzerland, between 12 and 17 August 2014. It was the first time that Switzerland had hosted the European Athletics Championships since 1954. Great Britain headed the medal table, w ...

, and

2015 World Championships in Athletics The 2015 IAAF World Championships ( zh, 第十五届世界田径锦标赛), the fifteenth edition of the IAAF World Championships, were held from 22 to 30 August at the National Stadium in Beijing, China. Forty-three nations won medals, 144 of ...

. Vadlejch had his breakthrough season in 2016. He reached the final at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

, taking eighth place, and took victory on the

circuit, with three wins and a personal best of in the process. At the 2017 World Championships he set his new personal best, , winning the silver medal.

2020 Tokyo Olympic

He won the silver medal in the Men's Javelin throw event. He finished at the second spot behind India's

Neeraj Chopra Neeraj Chopra (born 24 December 1997) is a track and field athlete from India. He is the reigning Olympic champion, silver medalist in the World Championship, and the Diamond League champion in Javelin throw. He is the first Asian athlete to win ...

International competitions

Circuit wins

;Diamond League *Overall title:

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

London Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Dia ...

: 2016 *

Meeting Areva Meeting de Paris (formerly known as the Meeting Areva and Meeting Gaz de France) is an annual track and field meeting at the Stade Sébastien Charléty in Paris, France. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamon ...

: 2016 *

Weltklasse Zürich Weltklasse Zürich ( en, World Class Zurich) is an annual, invitation-only, world-class track and field meeting at the Letzigrund in Zürich, Switzerland, generally held at the end of August or beginning of September. Previously one of the IAAF G ...

: 2016

Seasonal bests

*2008 – 76.57 m *2009 – 81.95 m *2010 – 84.47 m *2011 – 84.08 m *2012 – 80.40 m *2013 – 75.85 m *2014 – 82.97 m *2015 – 86.21 m *2016 – 88.02 m *2017 – 89.73 m *2018 – 89.02 m *2019 – 85.78 m *2020 – 84.31 m *2021 – 86.67 m *2022 - 90.88 m *2023 – 89.51 m

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vadlejch, Jakub 1990 births Living people Athletes from Prague Czech male javelin throwers Olympic athletes for the Czech Republic Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships athletes for the Czech Republic World Athletics Championships medalists Diamond League winners Czech Athletics Championships winners Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic silver medalists for the Czech Republic European Athletics Championships medalists European Athletics Championships winners