Michal Martikán
Encyclopedia
Michal Martikán (born May 18, 1979 in Liptovský Mikuláš
, Czechoslovakia
) is a Slovak
slalom canoeist
. In 1996 he became the first athlete to win an Olympic Games
gold medal
for Slovakia
since the country gained independence in 1993. In total he won 4 Olympic medals (2 golds and 2 silvers), which is the most among all slalom paddlers. He has also won the World Championship title in the C-1 individual category four times. He is considered by many the greatest C-1 slalom paddler alive.
of the Czech Republic. Martikán was the first Olympic champion to represent independent Slovakia. He entered the 2000 Olympics
as the favourite, having consistently finished near the top in every major competition and in each World Cup series. At the Sydney Games, Martikán registered the best score in the qualifying round, but was only in fifth place after the first run of the final. In the second run, he paddled a perfect course and his time was the fastest of the round. He was able to move up to the silver medal position behind Tony Estanguet
of France
. Competing in his third Olympics in 2004
, Martikán again led the qualifying round. He also earned the highest score in the semifinals, which also served as the first run of the final. After the second run, it appeared that Martikán had regained the Olympic title, but the referees controversially decided to award him a two second penalty which pushed him to second place, only 12 hundredths of a second behind Estanguet. However, Michal Martikán is the only slalom canoeist to win four Olympic medals, because he also won the gold medal in the Beijing 2008 Olympics in the Men's slalom C-1.
At the World Championships
, Martikán had an uninterrupted medal run in the individual C-1 event between 1995 and 2010. The 2011 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
saw him finish outside the medals for the first time in an Olympic or World Championship individual race in his career. Ironically, this failure came in front of a home crowd on the Čunovo course
near Bratislava
. However, he managed to win gold in the team event with his Slovak teammates to prolong his medal run to 11 straight World Championships as of 2011.
He won his first medals in 1995
when he was just 16. He took a bronze in the C-1 event and another bronze in the C-1 team event. In 1997
he won his first individual world title as well as team gold. He won the individual C-1 event on three more occasions (2002
, 2003
and 2007
). As of 2011 he has a total of 16 World Championship medals (9 golds, 3 silvers and 4 bronzes) which is more than any other slalom paddler in any category.
He has also won the overall World Cup
title four times (1998, 2000, 2001, 2006), which is a record among C-1 paddlers.
At the European Championships
he has won four straight individual golds between 2007 and 2010. Slovakia won the C-1 team event 7 times with him in the team. He also has 3 silver medals (2 individual and 1 in team event).
Martikán was found guilty of manslaughter and received a suspended sentence. In spite of Martikán's driver's license being revoked by the court as a part the sentence, Martikán continued driving until arrested again a few months later.
With Martikán facing actual incarceration due to the violation of his probation terms, then-president Rudolf Schuster, amid grave criticism, granted Martikán a presidential pardon, which besides sparing him from jail time effectively meant removal of the conviction from his criminal record. Schuster argued that Martikán's positive athletic representation of the country abroad warranted the pardon, while critics pointed to the double standard and the preferential treatment Martikán was receiving as a sport celebrity.
Liptovský Mikuláš
Liptovský Mikuláš is a town in northern Slovakia, on the Váh River. It lies in the Liptov region, in Liptov Basin near the Low Tatra and Tatra mountains...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
) is a Slovak
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
slalom canoeist
Slalom canoeing
Whitewater Slalom is a competitive sport where the aim is to navigate a decked canoe or kayak through a course of hanging gates on river rapids in the fastest time possible. It is one of the two kayak and canoeing disciplines at the Summer Olympics, and is referred to by the International Olympic...
. In 1996 he became the first athlete to win an Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
for Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
since the country gained independence in 1993. In total he won 4 Olympic medals (2 golds and 2 silvers), which is the most among all slalom paddlers. He has also won the World Championship title in the C-1 individual category four times. He is considered by many the greatest C-1 slalom paddler alive.
Career
At the age of 16, Michal Martikán became the youngest winner of a World Cup slalom canoeing event. Three months later, at age 17, Martikán was in sixth place after the first run of the canoe slalom singles event at the 1996 Olympics. With nothing to lose, he went all out on the second run and just bettered the score of defending champion Lukáš PollertLukáš Pollert
Lukáš Pollert is a Czech slalom canoer who competed in the 1990s. Competing in two Summer Olympics, he won two medals in the C-1 event with a gold in 1992 and a silver in 1996....
of the Czech Republic. Martikán was the first Olympic champion to represent independent Slovakia. He entered the 2000 Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
as the favourite, having consistently finished near the top in every major competition and in each World Cup series. At the Sydney Games, Martikán registered the best score in the qualifying round, but was only in fifth place after the first run of the final. In the second run, he paddled a perfect course and his time was the fastest of the round. He was able to move up to the silver medal position behind Tony Estanguet
Tony Estanguet
Tony Estanguet is a French slalom canoeist. He has competed since the late 1990s.-Career:Tony is the son of Henri Estanguet, himself a canoeist who won medals at the World Championships in the 1970s...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Competing in his third Olympics in 2004
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
, Martikán again led the qualifying round. He also earned the highest score in the semifinals, which also served as the first run of the final. After the second run, it appeared that Martikán had regained the Olympic title, but the referees controversially decided to award him a two second penalty which pushed him to second place, only 12 hundredths of a second behind Estanguet. However, Michal Martikán is the only slalom canoeist to win four Olympic medals, because he also won the gold medal in the Beijing 2008 Olympics in the Men's slalom C-1.
At the World Championships
ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships are an international event in canoeing organized by the International Canoe Federation. The World Championships have taken place every year in non-Summer Olympic years since 2002. From 1949 to 1999, they had taken place in odd-numbered years...
, Martikán had an uninterrupted medal run in the individual C-1 event between 1995 and 2010. The 2011 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
2011 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 2011 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were scheduled to take place from September 7–11, 2011 in Bratislava, Slovakia under the auspices of International Canoe Federation. Bad weather conditions on September 7 and 8 forced the organizers to make changes to the schedule. The events were all...
saw him finish outside the medals for the first time in an Olympic or World Championship individual race in his career. Ironically, this failure came in front of a home crowd on the Čunovo course
Water Sports Centre Cunovo
The Water Sports Centre Čunovo is an artificial whitewater slalom course in Slovakia, on an island in the Danube river, 14 km southeast of Bratislava, near the village of Čunovo. It is powered by flow diversion from the Čunovo dam...
near Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
. However, he managed to win gold in the team event with his Slovak teammates to prolong his medal run to 11 straight World Championships as of 2011.
He won his first medals in 1995
1995 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 1995 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Nottingham, Great Britain under the auspices of International Canoe Federation. Nottingham became the first city to host the canoe slalom and canoe sprint world championships, having hosted the sprint championships previously in...
when he was just 16. He took a bronze in the C-1 event and another bronze in the C-1 team event. In 1997
1997 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 1997 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Três Coroas, Brazil under the auspices of International Canoe Federation. It was the first time the championships were held in South America.-Canoe:-Kayak:-Kayak:-Medals table:-References:...
he won his first individual world title as well as team gold. He won the individual C-1 event on three more occasions (2002
2002 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 2002 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Bourg St.-Maurice, France under the auspices of International Canoe Federation for the record-tying third time. Bourg St.-Maurice hosted the championships previously in 1969 and 1987, and matches the times hosted by Spittal, Austria and...
, 2003
2003 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 2003 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Augsburg, Germany under the auspices of International Canoe Federation for the record-tying third time...
and 2007
2007 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The 2007 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil under the auspices of International Canoe Federation.-Canoe:-Kayak:-Kayak:-Medals table:-References:***...
). As of 2011 he has a total of 16 World Championship medals (9 golds, 3 silvers and 4 bronzes) which is more than any other slalom paddler in any category.
He has also won the overall World Cup
Canoe Slalom World Cup
The ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup has been held since 1988 in four canoe and kayak disciplines for men and women. The four original disciplines are men's single canoe , men's double canoe , men's kayak and women's kayak...
title four times (1998, 2000, 2001, 2006), which is a record among C-1 paddlers.
At the European Championships
European Canoe Slalom Championships
The European Canoe Slalom Championships is an annual international canoeing and kayaking event organized by the European Canoe Association since 1996...
he has won four straight individual golds between 2007 and 2010. Slovakia won the C-1 team event 7 times with him in the team. He also has 3 silver medals (2 individual and 1 in team event).
Manslaugther conviction
In November 1997 Martikán was involved in a car accident near the village of Velké Zálužie, Slovakia. The car he was driving hit a pedestrian causing him fatal injuries. The investigation concluded that Martikán was traveling substantially over the 40 km/h speed limit. It was also found that the killed man was intoxicated at the time of the accident.Martikán was found guilty of manslaughter and received a suspended sentence. In spite of Martikán's driver's license being revoked by the court as a part the sentence, Martikán continued driving until arrested again a few months later.
With Martikán facing actual incarceration due to the violation of his probation terms, then-president Rudolf Schuster, amid grave criticism, granted Martikán a presidential pardon, which besides sparing him from jail time effectively meant removal of the conviction from his criminal record. Schuster argued that Martikán's positive athletic representation of the country abroad warranted the pardon, while critics pointed to the double standard and the preferential treatment Martikán was receiving as a sport celebrity.