Karel Zelenka (born March 31, 1983) is a Czech-Italian former competitive

figure skater Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, with its introduction occurring at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic d ...

. He is a five-time (2003–2007) Italian national champion and competed at the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics (), officially the XX Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February in Turin, Italy. This marked the second time Italy had hosted the Winter O ...

. He qualified to the free skate at eleven ISU Championships – three World, three World Junior, and five European Championships – and finished in the top ten twice.

Personal life

Zelenka was born in 1983 in

Louny Louny (; ) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 18,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře River. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. His father is a figure skating coach. The family moved to Italy when the younger Zelenka was six years old. He received Italian citizenship in January 2006.

Career

Zelenka debuted on the ISU Junior Series (

ISU Junior Grand Prix The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (titled the ISU Junior Series in the 1997–98 season) is a series of international figure skating competition, junior-level competitions organized by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded ...

) in 1997. He won the Italian junior title in the 1998–99 season and was sent to his first ISU Championship – 1999 Junior Worlds in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, Croatia, where he finished 20th after qualifying to the final segment. Zelenka placed 19th at the 2000 Junior Worlds in

Oberstdorf Oberstdorf (Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Oberschdorf'') is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality and skiing and hiking town in Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. It is the southernmost settlement in German ...

, Germany, and 8th at the 2001 Junior Worlds in

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

, Bulgaria. In October 2001, he won the silver medal at his JGP assignment in Poland. Zelenka won the first of his five consecutive senior national titles in the 2002–03 season. He reached the free skate at the 2003 European Championships in

Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...

but was eliminated after the short program at the 2003 World Championships in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Zelenka competed at the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

; he placed 25th in the short program and missed qualifying to the free skate by one spot. He achieved his career-best ISU Championship placement, 7th, at the 2007 European Championships in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. He trained in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, Italy;

, Germany; and Switzerland.

Programs

Competitive highlights

''GP: Grand Prix; JGP: Junior Grand Prix''

References

External links

Official site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zelenka, Karel Italian male single skaters Czech male single skaters 1983 births Living people Czech emigrants to Italy Naturalised citizens of Italy Olympic figure skaters for Italy Figure skaters at the 2006 Winter Olympics Sportspeople from Louny 21st-century Italian sportsmen