Jiří Kodeš (17 February 1933 – 2 March 2006) was a Czech

sprint canoer Canoe sprint is a water sport in which athletes race in specially designed sprint canoes or sprint kayaks on calm water over a short distance. Prior to November 2008, canoe sprint was known as flatwater racing. The term is still in use today ...

and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

player. As a canoer, he won two bronze medals at the

1958 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships The 1958 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships were held in Prague, Czechoslovakia. This event was held under the auspices of the International Canoe Federation. The men's competition consisted of four Canadian (single paddle, open boat) and nine ka ...

. As a golfer, he was a successful player in senior categories and became member of the Czech Golf Hall of Fame.

Life

Jiří Kodeš was born on 17 February 1933 in

Poděbrady Poděbrady (; ) is a spa town in Nymburk District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 15,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Elbe River. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument ...

. He graduated from the Faculty of Physical Education and Sport of

Charles University Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest universities in the world in conti ...

in Prague via distance learning and worked as a university physical education teacher. He died on 2 March 2006.

Canoeing career

He competed in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He won two bronze medals at the

in Prague, earning them in the C-2 1000 m and C-2 10000 m events. Paired with

Václav Vokál Václav Vokál (born November 24, 1933) is a Czechoslovak sprint canoer who competed in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He beat two trees at the 1958 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Prague, earning them in the C-2 1000 m and C-2 1000 ...

, Kodeš finished fifth in the C-2 1000 m event at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad () and commonly known as Rome 1960 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 25 August to 11 September 1960 in Rome, Italy. Rome had previously been awar ...

in Rome.

Golf career

After he ended the canoeing career, at the age of 37, Kodeš started to play golf and became a member of the Golf Club Poděbrady. At the end of the 1970s, he became a regular participant in the Czechoslovak Championship. At the beginning of the 1980s, he became the manager of the Golf Club Poděbrady

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...

and was the main initiator of its reconstruction and expansion. In 1987, he represented Czechoslovakia in the European Championship in Austria. He achieved his greatest success in the senior categories. He won six domestic titles and in 1999 and 2000 was named the best golfer in Europe over 65 years of age. Until 2005, he was a member of the committee of the Czechoslovak and later the Czech Golf Federation. In 2003, he was inducted into the Czech Golf Hall of Fame.

Life

Canoeing career

Golf career

References

Further reading