Olga Fikotová-Connolly, Olympic discus thrower from Melbourne in 1956, died on Friday. She was 91 years old.
With reference to the information of the French coach and insider PJ Vazel, who refers to the family, this was reported by the Sport.cz server.
A native of Libiš, Fikotová-Connolly started out as a goalkeeper in the national handball, as a basketball player she even won silver at the European Championships, but she became most famous as a discus player. In addition, at the Melbourne Games, she met the American hammer thrower Harold Connolly, whom she married a year later in front of tens of thousands of people at the Old Town Hall in Prague. Their friends Dana and Emil Zátopek went as witnesses.
The Connollys moved to Boston. Fikotová-Connollyová wanted to continue to represent Czechoslovakia, but the then communist regime did not allow her to do so. She therefore competed in the colors of the USA at the next four Olympics. In Munich 1972, she was even the flag bearer of the American expedition.
After the end of her career, she worked in the social field and ecology. She and Connolly had four children but later divorced. Fikotová-Connolyová eventually settled in California and in her advanced age worked in Las Vegas as a personal trainer for people after injuries and the elderly.
She returned to the Czech Republic for a visit for the first time after moving overseas in 2006. A year later, she received the main prize of the Czech fair play club.
2024-04-15 07:18:42
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