Otakar HORINEK

Otakar Hořínek picked up shooting by chance, coming by a shooting range on a walk with his wife, and deciding to - literally - give it a shot. He turned out to be a talent, earning 17 Czechoslovakian titles during his career and breaking several national records as well. At the 1956 Olympics, Otakar Hořínek experienced the highlight of his shooting career. A small-bore rifle specialist, he placed second in the 3 positions event. He tied with Soviet shooter Anatoly Bogdanov, but lost the gold due a poorer performance in the prone part of the competition, which was the tie-breaker. Hořínek missed out on a medal in the prone competition (which was also a separate medal event), again despite tying on the overall bronze medal score. Following his Olympic performances, Hořínek won two medals at the 1957 European Championships, and a bronze at the 1958 World Championships, in the 50 m kneeling team event. Later, Hořínek was active as a shooting coach and trainer. In 2014, he was presented with a replica of his Olympic medal, after he had lost the original.