Vera RUZICKOVA

Věra Růžičková was originally a substitute on Czechoslovakia’s delegation to the women’s gymnastic tournament at the 1948 London Olympics, but was moved to the main team after Eliska Misáková contracted an illness that would prove to be fatal. It was Růžičková, therefore, who helped her team win a gold medal in the women’s all-around in London. She retired from active competition the following year and took up coaching and sports administration, remaining active in the latter into her 70s. Prior to World War II, Růžičková had been a swimmer and a diver, and after the conflict she also played basketball, having been encouraged to have an active physical life by her father.