Česky
* Which sport is your favourite now?
In the last twenty years, I have mostly enjoyed off-road mountain biking. We live in Prague 6, so my wife and I have our favourite bike paths out of the city. Otherwise, my favourite place to ride is in the Jizera Mountains, where my wife's parents have a cottage. I like swimming. I prefer the sea, where there is clean water, plenty of space, few people and reasonable water temperature. The most ideal is in Greece. I also try to play tennis. But now my teammate has dropped out for a while because of an injured shoulder.
In the winter I do a lot of cross-country skiing.
* What would you recommend to a complete beginner who wants to start playing tennis or cycling, so they don't end up with you?
Cycling is a relatively gentle sport, barring any falls. With tennis, it's good to have a head start. Someone to practice the strokes with the beginner. Like the serve, which puts a lot of stress on the lumbar spine and the shoulder.
* Did you yourself have someone to give you advice when you first started tennis?
A colleague in the army, a dentist from Slovakia, taught me the basics. After that, I learned the strokes carefully on my own. I listened to my body. My tennis is far from perfect, but I don't mind. I enjoy the game and the movement.
* Do you watch the top players play in tournaments?
I used to be able to watch a five-set battle from the Wimbledon final lasting several hours. Especially as long as Ivan Lendl or Björn Borg was playing. That was a feast. Now I watch it too, but not all the time. I always admire tennis players for enduring a five-set battle in the heat with great physical and mental strain.
* It's holiday time. Have you already had one this year, or are you looking forward to it?
My main holiday is over. My wife, friends and I went to Lipno. I am almost ashamed to admit that at my age it was the first time I was there. We lived in Horní Plané and rode our bikes around the area. There are beautiful bike paths around Lipno. The landscape there is not very hilly.
* Are you going to the sea this year?
Maybe at the end of September. If I could choose, I'd go to Crete. But our first grandson was born three months ago, so my wife and I are enjoying our new role as grandparents. We're staying in the Republic for now. So that we can lend a helping hand when needed.
* Are you looking forward to playing tennis with your grandson in a few years?
I'm looking forward to that more than anything. I can't fully apply myself right now. But when he starts walking a little bit, we can try some light football. I'm also looking forward to picking out his first mountain bike, his first tennis racket, and figuring out when to put him on skis. But first, I'm gonna find out what he's got the disposition for. I'm definitely not going to push him into any sport. It's best if you're passionate about the sport. Last time I did it was dragon boats.
* Where did you get into them?
Two years ago, I went with a team from our hospital to an amateur race here in Beroun. One of the teams was made up of guys ten years older than me. They were limping on the shore and exchanging experiences with endoprostheses. They reached the boat, got in, threw off their crutches, grabbed their oars and finished second. They put us to shame. We were about 20th. We didn't understand it at first. Then we found out they were the veteran world champions (laughs). But it was still a great team experience. We finished and nobody drowned. This year we're going on September 1. I have to admit, we don't train. Although it would have taken at least a day before to sit in the boat, match the pace and the shots. Otherwise, you'll see in the photos that half the team actually slowed down.
***
Profile of Ondřej Horáček * The sixty-two year old chief physician has been leading the Rehabilitation Centre of MUDr. Jan Calta in the Beroun hospital since 2011. * He graduated from the Faculty of General Medicine of Charles University in 1976-1982. After his studies he worked first as a secondary physician at the neurological clinic of Motol University Hospital and then as an outpatient neurologist. Since 1999, he worked at the Department of Rehabilitation and TVL of Motol University Hospital and Charles University 2nd Faculty of Medicine as a chief physician until 2010. * Ondřej Horáček is a Member of the Committee of the Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine Society of the Czech Medical Society J. E. Purkyně. He is co-author of the publication "Rehabilitation in Clinical Practice", whose main author is Professor Pavel Kolář. He is married and his first grandson was born this spring. In his spare time, he likes to mountain bike, play tennis and swim recreationally.
Jaroslava Šašková
Mladá fronta DNES - Central Bohemia
Photo description. A few weeks ago, he rode it around Lipno on his holiday (1st photo in the gallery). During the year, he also plays tennis on weekends for the joy of exercise.
