Vítězslav Veselý

Vítězslav Veselý (Czech pronunciation: [ˈviːcɛslav ˈvɛsɛliː]) (born 27 February 1983) is a Czech javelin thrower. He won two bronze medals at the Olympic games, in 2012 and 2020.^[1]

Vítězslav Veselý

Personal information
Nationality	Czech
Born	(1983-02-27) 27 February 1983 (age 42) Hodonín, Czechoslovakia
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	94 kg (207 lb; 14.8 st)
Sport
Country	Czech Republic
Sport	Track and field
Event	Javelin throw
Club	Dukla Praha
Turned pro	2002–
Coached by	Jan Železný
Achievements and titles
Personal best	Javelin throw: 88.34 (2012)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Czech Republic Olympic Games 2012 London Javelin throw 2020 Tokyo Javelin throw World Championships 2013 Moscow Javelin throw European Championships 2012 Helsinki Javelin throw 2014 Zürich Javelin throw 2016 Amsterdam Javelin throw Continental Cup 2014 Marrakech Javelin throw

Career

He finished ninth at the 2002 World Junior Championships. He threw a personal best throw of 81.20 metres during the qualifying round at the 2008 Olympic Games and finished twelfth in the final. He was less successful at his first World Championships in Athletics the following year, failing to make the final with a throw of 75.76 m.

Veselý improved his personal best by more than five metres at a meeting in Olomouc in May 2010, throwing a world leading mark of 86.45 m.^[2] He was ninth at the 2010 European Athletics Championships that year. He came close to a major medal with a fourth-place finish at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics. He had his second best ever throw at the Shanghai 2012 Diamond League meet, winning with a mark of 85.40 m.^[3] At the 2012 Olympic Games, Veselý threw a new personal best of 88.34 m to improve his world lead;^[4] in the final, however, his last throw of 83.34 m was only good enough for 4th place.^[5] In 2017, following the disqualification of Oleksandr Pyatnytsya due to doping, Veselý was awarded the bronze medal.^[6]

In 2013 Veselý won the World Championships with a mark of 87.17 meters, only 10 cm ahead of Tero Pitkämäki. With this result he became the second Czech world champion in men's javelin throw beside Jan Železný.

During 2014 he wasn't able to defend his title at the Europeans: Veselý finished second with 84.79 m behind Antti Ruuskanen, who was in his best form in the final, reaching 88.01 m at the third round.

Achievements

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
2002	World Junior Championships	Kingston, Jamaica	9th	68.76 m
2008	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	12th	76.76 m
2009	World Championships	Berlin, Germany	28th (q)	75.76 m
2010	European Championships	Barcelona, Spain	9th	77.83 m
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	4th	84.11 m
2012	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland	1st	83.72 m
	Olympic Games	London, Great Britain	3rd	83.34 m
2013	World Championships	Moscow, Russia	1st	87.17 m
2014	European Championships	Zürich, Switzerland	2nd	84.79 m
2015	World Championships	Beijing, China	8th	83.13 m
2016	European Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	2nd	83.59 m
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	7th	82.51 m
2017	World Championships	London, United Kingdom	26th (q)	75.50 m
2019	World Championships	Doha, Qatar	–	DNS
2021	Olympic Games	Tokyo, Japan	3rd	85.44 m
2022	European Championships	Munich, Germany	4th	84.36 m

Seasonal bests by year

• 2002 – 73.22
• 2006 – 75.98
• 2007 – 79.45
• 2008 – 81.20
• 2009 – 80.35
• 2010 – 86.45
• 2011 – 84.11
• 2012 – 88.34
• 2013 – 87.58
• 2014 – 87.38
• 2015 – 88.18
• 2016 – 84.82
• 2017 – 82.29
• 2018 – 82.30
• 2019 – 82.85
• 2020 – 83.03
• 2021 – 85.44
• 2022 – 85.97