Olga Fikotová
Encyclopedia
Olga Fikotová (ˈolɡa ˈfɪkotovaː) (born November 13, 1932 in Prague
) is a Czechoslovakia
n and later American
athlete who is best known for winning gold at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics in the discus
and her romance across Cold War barriers with American hammer
gold medalist Harold Connolly
.
A natural athlete, she represented Czechoslovakia at national level in basketball
and handball
before switching to discus throwing in 1954. Two years later, she was still a medical student at the Charles University in Prague
when she competed for Czechoslovakia in the 1956 Summer Olympics
held in Melbourne
, Australia
in the Discus. The 24-year-old became Czechoslovakia's only gold medalist at the Olympics when she won the event with a throw of 53.69m ahead of Soviet
pair Irina Beglyakova
(52.54m) and Nina Ponmaryova
(52.02m).
Half a century later, she commented on her rapid progress:
During the games she fell in love with the American athlete Harold Connolly
who won the hammer throw
.
The romance was well received by the Western media and public but not as popular with the Czechoslovakian team minders. Several months later, Connolly visited her home in Prague where they planned to get married. Fikotova was surprisingly given a permit to marry a foreigner, possibly due to the positive involvement of Czechoslovak president Antonín Zápotocký
, who met the couple a few days before the wedding.
Their witnesses for the wedding were the legendary Czech couple and Olympic athletics gold medalists Emil Zátopek
and Dana Zátopková
. They had planned for a tiny mid-week wedding, but news of it somehow got out and it was attended by thousands of people.
The couple moved to the United States after the wedding. Olga wanted to continue representing Czechoslovakia, but the Czechoslovak Olympic Committee refused to allow her to do so and then spread the word that she had refused to represent Czechoslovakia any more. She was ostracized by several of her former compatriots for years before the truth became known. Thereafter, Olga Connolly took part in every Olympics till 1972 competing for the United States, placing 7th in 1960 and 6th in 1968. She carried the flag for the United States at the 1972 Summer Olympics.
Olga and Harold remained married for 17 years before getting divorced in 1973. One of their sons became a national-caliber javelin thrower and decathlete, and one of their daughters played on the U.S. national volleyball team. Today she lives an active life in California, working on environmental causes, leading a keep fit group, and working in a shop selling mountaineering goods.
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
) is a 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...
n and later American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
athlete who is best known for winning gold at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics in the discus
Discus
Discus, "disk" in Latin, may refer to:* Discus , a progressive rock band from Indonesia* Discus , a fictional character from the Marvel Comics Universe and enemy of Luke Cage* Discus , a freshwater fish popular with aquarium keepers...
and her romance across Cold War barriers with American hammer
Hammer throw
The modern or Olympic hammer throw is an athletic throwing event where the object is to throw a heavy metal ball attached to a wire and handle. The name "hammer throw" is derived from older competitions where an actual sledge hammer was thrown...
gold medalist Harold Connolly
Harold Vincent Connolly
Harold Vincent "Hal" Connolly was an American athlete and hammer thrower from Somerville, Massachusetts. He won a gold medal in the hammer throw at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. During the course of his career, Connolly became the first American to throw more than 200 feet...
.
A natural athlete, she represented Czechoslovakia at national level in basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and handball
Team handball
Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team...
before switching to discus throwing in 1954. Two years later, she was still a medical student at the Charles University in Prague
Charles University in Prague
Charles University in Prague is the oldest and largest university in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1348, it was the first university in Central Europe and is also considered the earliest German university...
when she competed for Czechoslovakia in the 1956 Summer Olympics
1956 Summer Olympics
The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations...
held in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in the Discus. The 24-year-old became Czechoslovakia's only gold medalist at the Olympics when she won the event with a throw of 53.69m ahead of Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
pair Irina Beglyakova
Irina Beglyakova
Irina Beglyakova is a Soviet athlete who competed mainly in the Discus. She trained at Burevestnik in Moscow.She competed for the USSR in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia in the Discus where she won the Silver medal.-References:...
(52.54m) and Nina Ponmaryova
Nina Romashkova
Nina Apollonovna Ponomaryova was a Soviet/Russian discus thrower, the first Soviet Olympic Champion.She became interested in athletics since 1947, when she entered the Physical Training Faculty of the Stavropol Pedagogical Institute...
(52.02m).
Half a century later, she commented on her rapid progress:
“Both handball, where I was a goalie, and basketball itself, are both very, very…movement-oriented sports. So already, I believe, I had a great deal of neuro-muscular co-ordination and pathways developed. When I started to throw the discus, my old coach, Otakar Jandera was his name, a very venerable coach, said to me ‘at your level of athleticism, all you need is learn the technique and catch the rhythm of it’. He started me off by playing the Blue Danube over and over again on the loudspeakers in the stadium, and had me making turns. I can say that before I went to the Olympic Games I probably had, say, from the age of 14 – before those two years – seven years of really heavy training.”
During the games she fell in love with the American athlete Harold Connolly
Harold Vincent Connolly
Harold Vincent "Hal" Connolly was an American athlete and hammer thrower from Somerville, Massachusetts. He won a gold medal in the hammer throw at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. During the course of his career, Connolly became the first American to throw more than 200 feet...
who won the hammer throw
Hammer throw
The modern or Olympic hammer throw is an athletic throwing event where the object is to throw a heavy metal ball attached to a wire and handle. The name "hammer throw" is derived from older competitions where an actual sledge hammer was thrown...
.
“But somehow fate brought us together, and we found that although we were from opposite or far away corners of the world, and definitely from political systems that seemed to be completely incompatible, that when it came to basic human values and observations, we were extremely similar. We were trying to converse in my very fragmented English, and his fragmented German, because he'd travelled in Germany before. We were kind of putting together ideas and views and we were surprisingly close together. From that developed, besides curiosity and friendship, also a feeling of love.”
The romance was well received by the Western media and public but not as popular with the Czechoslovakian team minders. Several months later, Connolly visited her home in Prague where they planned to get married. Fikotova was surprisingly given a permit to marry a foreigner, possibly due to the positive involvement of Czechoslovak president Antonín Zápotocký
Antonín Zápotocký
Antonín Zápotocký was communist Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia from 1948 to 1953 and President of Czechoslovakia from 1953 to 1957....
, who met the couple a few days before the wedding.
Their witnesses for the wedding were the legendary Czech couple and Olympic athletics gold medalists Emil Zátopek
Emil Zátopek
Emil Zátopek was a Czech long-distance runner best known for winning three gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. He won gold in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres runs, but his final medal came when he decided at the last minute to compete in the first marathon of his life...
and Dana Zátopková
Dana Zátopková
Dana Zátopková was a Czech javelin thrower. She won the gold medal for javelin in the 1952 Summer Olympics , and the silver medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics. She was the European champion in 1954 and 1958...
. They had planned for a tiny mid-week wedding, but news of it somehow got out and it was attended by thousands of people.
“When the wedding day arrived and our cars couldn't get to the square, I thought there'd been an accident. But actually some say 25,000, some say 30,000 people…had turned out to see the wedding...on the Old Town Square. Some came because they had never seen Dana and Emil Zátopek, who were our witnesses. Some came to see the American who'd come to Prague – they'd never seen a regular, average American, or an American champion like that…others came to support me. And it turned into this crowded festival – people had fun!”
The couple moved to the United States after the wedding. Olga wanted to continue representing Czechoslovakia, but the Czechoslovak Olympic Committee refused to allow her to do so and then spread the word that she had refused to represent Czechoslovakia any more. She was ostracized by several of her former compatriots for years before the truth became known. Thereafter, Olga Connolly took part in every Olympics till 1972 competing for the United States, placing 7th in 1960 and 6th in 1968. She carried the flag for the United States at the 1972 Summer Olympics.
Olga and Harold remained married for 17 years before getting divorced in 1973. One of their sons became a national-caliber javelin thrower and decathlete, and one of their daughters played on the U.S. national volleyball team. Today she lives an active life in California, working on environmental causes, leading a keep fit group, and working in a shop selling mountaineering goods.