Petr Procházka

Petr Procházka (born 1964 in Hradec Králové) is a Czech flatwater canoer and current (2006) world champion in the Canadian canoe C4 200m.

World junior champion in Belgrade in 1982, Procházka missed the 1984 Olympics because of the Eastern Bloc's boycott but went on to win two medals at the 1987 senior World Championships in Duisburg, Germany. In the individual C1 500m he was the silver medallist. He also won a bronze medal in the C2 500m with partner Alan Lohniský. At the 1988 Summer Olympics however he came a disappointing eighth in the C1 500m and ninth in the C2 500m.

Ten years later, at an age when most canoers are contemplating retirement, Procházka was embarking on a remarkable run of victories as a member of the Czech four-man C4 200m crew. He won a world championship gold medal in 1998, followed by four European titles (1999, 2000, 2001 and 2005). The 200m, the shortest race distance, was ideal for Procházka, with his great physical strength and excellent technique more than compensating for a natural loss of stamina.

At the age of forty-two, the evergreen Procházka and the C4 200m crew finished in fourth place at the 2006 European Championships held in Račice (where he now lives) in the Czech Republic. They had lost their European crown, but a month later they finally became world champions in Szeged, Hungary, an astonishing achievement for Procházka, the oldest competitor at the championships.

Nicknamed "Čáp" ("The Stork"), he is also still a member of the Czech Republic national Dragon boat squad. He is 175cmm (5'9") tall and weighs 85kg (187 lbs).