Jan Železný
Encyclopedia
Jan Železný (ˈjan ˈʒɛlɛzniː) (born 16 June 1966 in Mladá Boleslav
, Czechoslovakia
) is a Czech
javelin throw
er, world and Olympic
champion and world record holder in javelin throw
. He holds all five of the top 5 javelin performances of all time.
Železný won the gold at the 1992
, 1996
and 2000
Summer Olympic Games
and Silver in the 1988 Olympics
as well as three World Championship titles; in 1993, 1995 and 2001. Because of his achievements he is widely considered to be the greatest javelin thrower ever.
Železný holds the world record, at 98.48 metre set in 1996, and the World Championships record of 92.80 m, set in 2001
. , Železný has made 52 throws over 90 meters, more than all other javelin throwers combined (32). He is also the only athlete to throw more than 94 meters with the new type of javelin, something he achieved five times.
During his career he has had many great battles against the like of Steve Backley
, Sergey Makarov
, Boris Henry
, Seppo Räty
, Raymond Hecht
and Aki Parviainen
.
He planned to retire after the 2006 European Championships
in Gothenburg
, where he won the bronze with a throw of 85.92 m.
He took leave of his career on 19 September 2006 on exhibition in Mladá Boleslav
, the place where he started with athletics.
He will continue working for the IOC and as a coach in Prague
.
Mladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, on the left bank of the Jizera river about 50 km northeast of Prague.Founded in the second half of the 10th century by King Boleslav II as a royal castle...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
) is a Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
javelin throw
Javelin throw
The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
er, world and Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
champion and world record holder in javelin throw
Javelin throw
The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
. He holds all five of the top 5 javelin performances of all time.
Železný won the gold at the 1992
Athletics at the 1992 Summer Olympics
At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, 43 events in athletics were contested, 24 events by men and 19 by women. The competition ran from July 31, 1992 to August 9, 1992. Fourteen world record-holders were among the contenders...
, 1996
Athletics at the 1996 Summer Olympics
At the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, 44 events in athletics were contested, 24 by men and 20 by women. There were a total number of 2053 participating athletes from 191 countries.-Men:...
and 2000
Athletics at the 2000 Summer Olympics
At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, 46 events in athletics were contested, 24 for men and 22 for women. There were a total number of 2134 participating athletes from 193 countries.-Men's events:...
Summer Olympic Games
Summer Olympic Games
The Summer Olympic Games or the Games of the Olympiad are an international multi-sport event, occurring every four years, organized by the International Olympic Committee. Medals are awarded in each event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that...
and Silver in the 1988 Olympics
Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics
At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul a total number of 42 events in athletics were contested: 24 by men and 18 by women. There were a total number of 1617 participating athletes from 149 countries.-Men's events:...
as well as three World Championship titles; in 1993, 1995 and 2001. Because of his achievements he is widely considered to be the greatest javelin thrower ever.
Železný holds the world record, at 98.48 metre set in 1996, and the World Championships record of 92.80 m, set in 2001
2001 World Championships in Athletics
The 8th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held at the Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada between 3 August and 12 August and was the first time the event had visited North America...
. , Železný has made 52 throws over 90 meters, more than all other javelin throwers combined (32). He is also the only athlete to throw more than 94 meters with the new type of javelin, something he achieved five times.
During his career he has had many great battles against the like of Steve Backley
Steve Backley
Stephen James Backley OBE is a retired British athlete who was formerly the world record holder for javelin throwing...
, Sergey Makarov
Sergey Alexandrovich Makarov
Sergey Makarov is a Russian javelin thrower.Born into a sporting family, Makarov's father, Aleksandr Makarov, won the silver medal in javelin throw at the 1980 Summer Olympics....
, Boris Henry
Boris Henry
Boris Henry is a German javelin thrower. He has won the bronze medal in the World Championships twice, in 1995 and again in 2003....
, Seppo Räty
Seppo Räty
Seppo Henrik Räty is a Finnish javelin thrower. His personal best throw was 96.96 m in 1991, which was a world record at the time, however this throw was made using a modified 'Nemeth' javelin which was banned by the IAAF later that year and all records made using this javelin were retrospectively...
, Raymond Hecht
Raymond Hecht
Raymond Hecht is a retired German javelin thrower. He represented SC Magdeburg in former East Germany....
and Aki Parviainen
Aki Parviainen
Aki Uolevi Parviainen is a Finnish Javelin thrower, who won the gold medal at the 1999 World Championships in Athletics and a silver medal at the 2001 World Championships. His best throw is 93.09 in 1999. His best Olympic placing is 5th in 2000...
.
He planned to retire after the 2006 European Championships
2006 European Championships in Athletics
The 19th European Athletics Championships were held in Gothenburg, Sweden, between 7 August and 13 August 2006. The competition arena was the Ullevi Stadium and the official motto "Catch the Spirit"...
in Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, where he won the bronze with a throw of 85.92 m.
He took leave of his career on 19 September 2006 on exhibition in Mladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, on the left bank of the Jizera river about 50 km northeast of Prague.Founded in the second half of the 10th century by King Boleslav II as a royal castle...
, the place where he started with athletics.
He will continue working for the IOC and as a coach in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
.