Jiří Zedníček

“I think that using the Olympics for the presentation of any political opinions is wrong. Look, there had been much talk about this before and during the Beijing Olympics of 2008. But the Olympic Games are the only space in which sportsmen and women coming from various political setups, from various countries, compete with each other and also meet each other. For instance the Olympic village is an incredibly peaceful place where sportsmen from various countries, which may well be at war with each other, get to sit to next other. And to use this space for the assertion of political opinions is very tricky. Because if we present our political opinions loudly in there, we must accept that so will the others with whom we deeply disagree. And suddenly, it will begin to transform from a sports event into a battle of political thought. I think it is good that the Olympics are in this regard, to the extent possible, purified of politics. In the end, from the ancient times there had been something like an Olympic armistice – in the course of the Olympics no wars would be waged. I wish it were the same today.”

“I was not limited by any political constraints when it came to travelling abroad. This had nothing to do with leaving the country. I played basketball too well to be vulnerable in this regard. All the top-level sportsmen and sportswomen received offers to join the Communist Party. I was not a member of either the Communist Party or the Socialist Youth Association and nothing had happened to me. In this sense I suppose that a much more important aim was to make certain people afraid. But when these people did not become afraid, then what had happened – nothing.”