1952: The Results of the Czechoslovak National Championships

By May of 1952, when Czechoslovakia held its national championships, the writing was on the wall: Czechoslovakia’s once-dominant women’s gymnastics team was no longer the force it had been four years prior. At the Helsinki Olympics, the defending Olympic champions wouldn’t be the ones to beat. At best, they would be the third-best team. (During Hungary’s Liberation Day competition in April, the Czechoslovak women took second to the Hungarian women, whom the Soviet Union had defeated during a dual meet.)

The Czechoslovak men’s team still had its stalwarts in 1952. The country’s two Olympic medalists from London 1948 were still in the mix. Zdeněk Růžička, a bronze medalist on rings and floor in London, took home the rings title at the 1952 national championships in Humpolec. Meanwhile, Leo Sotorník, who had tied for bronze on vault in 1948, soared to gold on his signature event in the lead-up to Helsinki.

Below, you can find the results of the 1952 national championships. Unfortunately, the newspapers of the time did not add much commentary about the competition.

Women’s Results

All-Around

1. Rabasová Jana	S. Jawa Praha	79.73
2. Šínová Matylda	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	77.88
3. Bobková Hana	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	76.89
4. Chadimová Alena	S. Křižík Praha	76.53
5. Věchtová Věra	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	76.34
6. Reichová Alena	S. Doubravka Plzeň
7. Tichánková	S. ČKD Stalingrád
8. Břecková	S. Křižík Praha
9. SrncováBožena	S Koh-I-noor Praha

Note: All scores come from Rudé Právo, May 25 and 26, 1952

Vault

1. Bobková Hana	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	18.36
2. Šínová Matylda	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	17.84
3. Rabasová Jana	S. Jawa Praha	17.73

Uneven Bars

1. Rabasová Jana	S. Jawa Praha	18.00
2. Reichová Alena	S. Doubravka Plzeň	16.80
3. Šínová Matylda	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	16.53

Balance Beam

1. Věchtová Eva	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	18.03
2. Vančurová Věra	S. Sparta ČKD-Sokolovo	17.77
3. Rabasová Jana	S. Jawa Praha	17.43

Floor Exercise

1. Věchtová Eva	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	18.64
2. Vančurová Věra	S. Sparta ČKD-Sokolovo	18.23
3. Rabasová Jana	S. Jawa Praha	17.94

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Men’s Results

All-Around

1. Daniš Ferdinand	ATK	109.75
2. Svoboda Josef	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	108.65
3. Sotorník Leo	S. VŽKG	108.15
4. Houdek	ATK	106.65
5. Mikulec Jindřich	ATK	106.25
6. Kejř Vladimír	ATK	105.65
7. Kolejka Miloš	ATK	105.50
8. Matlocha	ATK	100.35
9. Hanyk	ATK	99.50
10. Mattauch	ATK	99.05

Floor Exercise

1. Svoboda Josef	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	18.70
2. Daniš Ferdinand	ATK	18.60
3. Mikulec Jindřich	ATK	18.30

Pommel Horse

1. Sotorník Leo	S. VŽKG	18.70
2. Růžička Zdeněk	S. Zbrojovka Brno I	18.60
3. Houdek	ATK	18.30

Still Rings

1. Růžička Zdeněk	S. Zbrojovka Brno I	19.10
2. Kejř Vladimír	ATK	18.95
3. Daniš Ferdinand	ATK	18.15

Vault

1. Sotorník Leo	S. VŽKG	19.40
2. Svoboda Josef	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	19.30
3. Kejř Vladimír	ATK	18.90

Parallel Bars

1. Daniš Ferdinand	ATK	18.90
2. Růžička Zdeněk	S. Zbrojovka Brno I	18.15
3. Sotorník Leo	S. VŽKG	18.00

High Bar

1. Daniš Ferdinand	ATK	18.45
2. Mikulec Jindřich	ATK	18.30
3. Svoboda Josef	Pedagogical Faculty Brno	18.10

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