The Czech Republic earned its first 2016 Olympics medal yesterday in Rio, as kayaker Jiří Prskavec won the bronze in the men’s K-1 canoe slalom.
“Unbelievable! I can’t express my feelings, but it’s wonderful,” Prskavec said from the podium after receiving the medal, reported iDnes.cz.
Slovenia’s Peter Kauzer took home the silver in the event, while the UK’s Joseph Clarke won gold with a time of 1:28.53.
Prskavec was a mere .45 seconds from Clarke’s time, coming in at 1.28:99. If not for a two-second penalty for grazing a slalom pole, the Czech would have handily taken home the gold.
“The touch was a shame. I was on the fastest Olympic run and could have won,” he said.
The Olympic medal is the 23-year-old’s first. His father, also Jiří Prskavec, was an Olympic slalom canoer who competed in Sydney in 2000, finishing 13th.
Czech Kateřina Kudějová will compete in the women’s K-1 canoe slalom later today.
More Czech Olympic coverage can be found via the Český olympijský tým on Facebook.