Tereza Huříková (born 11 February 1987 in

Vimperk Vimperk (; german: Winterberg) is a town in Prachatice District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,300 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Historically ...

) is a Czech professional road cyclist and mountain biker. Throughout her sporting career, she has won numerous Czech national championship titles in women's cross-country, road races and time trial, and more importantly, a prestigious gold medal in the junior time trial at the 2004 UCI World Championships. Huříková later represented the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, as a 20-year-old junior, at the 2008 Summer Olympics, and also rode for and Česká Spořitelna MTB Cycling Teams since she turned professional in 2006. Currently, Huříková trains and races under an exclusive, two-year sponsorship contract for Germany's Central Haibike Pro Team, along with her teammate and 2008 Olympic champion Sabine Spitz.

Racing career

Before her professional sporting career, Huříková had sought global headlines, as a junior road rider and a member of the Czech cycling team, at the 2004 UCI World Championships in

Verona, Italy Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in north ...

, where she claimed her first and only gold medal in the women's time trial. In 2006, Huříková turned her sights to and took up seriously as an elite athlete in mountain biking. She flourished her first career success at the Czech MTB National Championships, and later mounted top three finishes in the women's cross-country races at the European Championships, UCI World Cup, and ''Race Under The Sun'' Cup Series (Cyprus) in that same year. Strong results in cross-country mountain biking landed her a spot on the Česká Spořitelna MTB Team, followed by short, yet succeeding stints on Italy's for a single season. Huříková qualified for the Czech squad, as a lone female rider, in the women's cross-country race at the 2008 Summer Olympics in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

by receiving an automatic berth both from UCI and Czech Cycling Union, based on her best performance at the World Cup series and Mountain Biking World Rankings. Since the start of a 4.8-km cross-country course, Huříková immediately became the major casualty on the initial lap, as she had been collided with another cyclist and then suffered from a mild rib fracture by falling off into the treacherous, rocky course path. Because of a heavy fall at the very start, Huříková officially failed to complete the full distance of the course. Shortly after the Olympics, Huříková left on her second stint for her nation's Česká Spořitelna MTB Team. In 2009, she managed to restore from her disheartening Olympic stint by capturing two tournament titles each in women's road race and time trial at the joint Czech and Slovak Championships in Bánovce nad Bebravou,

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, signifying her sudden return to road cycling. At the end of 2009 season, Huříková decided to join the Spanish mountain biking team Trek-Lorca Taller del Tiempo for the succeeding season, and was signed exclusively under a three-year contract. While competing for Team Trek-Lorca, she capped a successful 2010 season by delivering a sensational surprise bronze medal for her Czech squad in mixed relay at the European MTB Championships in

Haifa, Israel Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

. At the start of the 2011 season, Huříková confirmedly joined with her teammate and 2008 Olympic champion Sabine Spitz for three seasons on Germany's Central Haibike Pro Team, as her short cycling stint with Team Trek-Lorca had been disbanded due to bankruptcy and lack of sponsorship.

Career achievements

;2004 :

UCI World Championships The UCI world championships are annual competitions promoted by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to determine world champion cyclists. They are held in several different styles of racing, in a different country each year. Championship winne ...

(ITT, Junior),

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

(ITA) ;2005 :

(ITT, Junior),

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

(AUT) : 3rd Overall, Eko Tour Dookola Polski, Poland :: 1st Stage 3 : 8th

(Road, Junior),

(AUT) ;2007 : 1st MaillotRepúblicaCheca

Czech Championships (ITT), Brno (CZE) : 2nd Czech Championships (Cross-country race), Czech Republic : 2nd Race Under the Sun (Cross-country race),

Limassol Limassol (; el, Λεμεσός, Lemesós ; tr, Limasol or ) is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the district with the same name. Limassol is the second largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population ...

(CYP) : 3rd European Championships (Cross-country race, U23), Turkey : 14th

(ITT), Stuttgart (GER) ;2008 : 3rd European Championships (Cross-country race, U23),

Sankt Wendel Sankt Wendel is a town in northeastern Saarland. It is situated on the river Blies 36 km northeast of Saarbrücken, the capital of Saarland, and is named after Saint Wendelin of Trier. According to a survey by the German Association for Ho ...

(GER) ;2009 : 1st MaillotRepúblicaCheca

Czech and Slovak Championships (Road), Bánovce nad Bebravou (SVK) : 1st MaillotRepúblicaCheca

Czech and Slovak Championships (ITT), Bánovce nad Bebravou (SVK) ;2010 : 3rd Czech Championships (Cross-country race),

Kuřim Kuřim (; german: Gurein) is a town in Brno-Country District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. It is the most populated town of Brno-Country District. Geography Kuřim is located about north of ...

(CZE) : 3rd European Championships (Cross-country race, Team relay),

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

(ISR) ;2012 : 1st MaillotRepúblicaCheca

Czech and Slovak Championships (Road), Czech Republic ;2013 : 1st MaillotRepúblicaCheca

Czech and Slovak Championships (Road), Czech Republic

References

External links

*
NBC 2008 Olympics profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hurikova, Tereza 1987 births Living people Czech female cyclists Cross-country mountain bikers Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic cyclists for the Czech Republic People from Vimperk Cyclists at the 2015 European Games European Games competitors for the Czech Republic Sportspeople from the South Bohemian Region