Petr Procházka (born March 26, 1964 in

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; german: Königgrätz) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 91,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected by law as an ...

) is a

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Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places *Czech, ...

sprint canoeist who competed from 1982 to 2006. World junior champion in

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in 1982, Procházka missed the 1984 Olympics because of the Eastern Bloc's boycott but went on to win two medals at the 1987 senior World Championships in

Duisburg Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in Nor ...

, West Germany. In the individual C-1 500 m he was the silver medallist. He also won a bronze medal in the C-2 500 m with partner Alan Lohniský. At the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

however he came a disappointing eighth in the C-1 500 m and ninth in the C-2 500 m. Ten years later, at an age when most canoeists are contemplating retirement, Procházka was embarking on a remarkable run of victories as a member of the Czech four-man C-4 200 m crew. He won a

world championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

gold medal in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

, followed by four European titles (1999, 2000, 2001 and 2005). The 200 m, the shortest race distance, was ideal for Procházka, with his great physical strength and excellent technique more than compensating for a natural loss of stamina. At the age of forty-two, the evergreen Procházka and the C-4 200 m crew finished in fourth place at the 2006 European Championships held in Račice (where he now lives) in the Czech Republic. They had lost their European crown, but a month later they finally became

world champions A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

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, Hungary, an astonishing achievement for Procházka, the oldest competitor at the championships. Procházka would win a total of ten world championship medals in his career. Nicknamed ''Čáp'' ("The Stork"), he is also still a member of the Czech Republic national

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squad. He is 175cmm (5'9") tall and weighs 85 kg (187 lbs).

References

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Sports-reference.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prochazka, Petr 1964 births Canoeists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Czech male canoeists Czechoslovak male canoeists Living people Olympic canoeists for Czechoslovakia Olympic canoeists for the Czech Republic Sportspeople from Hradec Králové ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medalists in Canadian