Olympics Prague

Czech’s nomination to host the Olympic Games in 2016, or possibly in 2020, is already underway. This is a third try by Prague and the Czech Republic to host the world’s biggest sporting event. The previous attempts in the last century failed due to political issues.

The first serious Olympic candidature proposal was made in December 1920. Its author was Ji?í Guth-Jarkovský, who had been working since 1919 as the International Olympic Committee secretary-general. He became inspired with the concept whilst visiting the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896.

Ji?í Guth-Jarkovský, chief marshal to the president Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, persuaded major politicians, including the Minister of Foreign Affairs Edvard Beneš, about the Olympic Game’s benefits for the Republic. In reality the competition between the five other candidates (Amsterdam, Barcelona, Los Angeles, Roma and Paris) didn’t take place, even though Prague was included in the IOC statistics as a candidate city.

Ji?í Guth-Jarkovský was reportedly persuaded by his friend, French baron Pierre de Coubertin who was a founder of the modern Games. His desire was to say goodbye to the Olympic Games on home territory which was why the Czech capital city didn’t stand as a candidate.

The election was won by Paris and Prague was given, in return, an opportunity to organize VIII International Committee Congress in 1925.

The Congress proved to be a success and the Czech Olympic Committee declared in January 1926 to be in favour of Prague hosting the Olympic Games. There was even an Olympic fund created but in the end the attempt was marred by the start of the Second World War.

The Prague Olympic Games initiative was brought back to life at the end of sixties by the head of the Czech Olympic Committee, Professor Emanuel Bosák. During the candidacy procedure for 1980 the preparatory studies were drawn up. According to them, the central locality was supposed to be at Maniny, the project would have been financially backed by the public purse and in 1968 the government also announced its support. The Warsaw Pact invasion and normalisation put an end to the Olympic dreams. Prague had to make way for Moscow, where the Olympic Games finally took place in 1980. All that Prague was left with was the hotel Olympik, the only reminder of Prague candidacy.

The third nomination attempt doesn’t concern just the capital city. Its motto is “Olympic Games for the Czech Republic” and it should take place in other locations as well. The whole republic’s policy counts on the involvement of all the Czech districts which would host preparatory training camps and serve as Olympic sports facilities.

- Czech Olympic comittee

- Olympic Prague

- Prague2016.org