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“Karel has achieved great results thanks to excellent training morale,” remembers Joseph Trdla, a 55-year-old contemporary from the athletic section of Liaz Jablonec. “Even after his success, he remained an ordinary man who did not spoil any fun.” Kolar’s stellar moments fall into the dark years, which are now referred to as the era of systematic, state-controlled doping. “But Karel had his medals only out of his trouble,” says Trdla.

Kolar with MF DNES years ago confessed that he was running from a hard concentration of beer but always forbidden anabolic steroids. “I ended the semifinals at the Olympics in Moscow and I was probably the only one clean,” he added.

The native of Jindřichův Hradec later joined his life with Jablonec nad Nisou.He died last week at the age of 61.

“Karel Kolář was one of the athletic legends and he wrote in the history of Czechoslovak sports. He has been troubled by health problems in recent years and we have tried to help him, “said Pavel Benc, President of the Olympics Club in Northern Bohemia. “We will be remembered as a great athlete, but also a good-natured and folk.”

Kolar won at the European Championship in Prague 1978 silver in 400 meters and bronze in the relay at 4 x 400 meters. In 1979 he became Europe Hall of Champions, one year later he won the European silver in the hall.Before the Olympics in Moscow, he was injured, but he jumped to the semifinals and the Czechoslovak relay led to the final and seventh.

In 1981, the health problems were over and Kolar had to finish with the top athletics. He started playing in Mšena football for Elitex Mšeno and trained athletic youth. He played as a football referee and was popular for his fairness.

He also met with Vladimir Mařas, the player of Swim and the later coach Mšena. “At the 1978 European Championship in Prague, Karel made me remember indelibly.When I came up against him in football, I admired that despite his famous name he never hesitated, “says Maras. “He did not like some much less successful footballers who ever tried a league and after the battles they were screaming – What do you kick, you zero ?! Do you know who I am ?! Karel was a completely different, cool and good guy on the pitch. “According to Maars Kolar, he loved sport, and he was one of the exceptions to the rule that athletes are mostly soccer misses. “We were most afraid of his speed on the pitch. Although he did not already athletics, none of us was able to run with football, “says Maras.

Kolář’s time of 45.77 from the 1978 European Championship final remained a Czech record for nearly 33 years.A quarter considered one of the worst but also the most beautiful athletic disciplines, Kolar said: “It’s up to thirty-five meters, but then it’s about something else.” Unlike today’s top athletes, for his medal. “People sometimes say to me – you would be packed today. But I do not take it that way. At that time things were different than money, “Kolar recalled at MF DNES in 2009 when he worked as a masseur. “We looked abroad, which was not the case, and we really wanted to prove something.”

Kolar did not do just sports, but also politics. He also sat in the council in Jablonec nad Nisou. He got there in the “jersey” of the CSSD, but he later left.For his greatest political success, he and his colleagues managed to raise money for the reconstruction of the Střelnice stadium and the construction of a sports hall near the Mšena dam.