Lonely wolf Chalupa and his life-long love

Twenty-two years of top rowing, six Olympic starts decorated with a silver medal from Barcelona in 1992, another four silver medals in the world championships, this is just a very brief business card of Václav Chalupa, one of the greatest personalities of Czech rowing. How did rowing enroll the life of this in December fifty-year-old native of Jindřichův Hradec?

If you look back, what did your rowing give you, and what did it take from you?

Well, that could be a long talk. It gave me so much! Rowing was and still is my life. I jumped into it at the age of thirteen, and since then, I have not actually come out. It gave me so much! Already at the time I began to row and was struggling in school. Rowing helped me. Thanks to rowing, I know that when I practice honestly, the results will come. That if one gives himself a goal, he can stand up even against problems. Rowing is helping me all my life, thanks to rowing I traveled the world, met a lot of friends, discovered interesting things. Of course, it also took away a piece of a carefree childhood and a piece of growing up when you want to taste some forbidden fruit. Something I had to forsake or enjoy only within certain limits. I had to taste the life, but not so much to ruin what I truly wanted to do.

So, you would not change anything?

Of course, it had its pluses and minuses, but the pluses clearly prevailed. I wouldn’t probably change anything.

Twenty-two years of top rowing, that is an exceptional career. If you would make a quick private inventory, is something that jumps right up first?

The Olympics comes up right away. Specifically, Barcelona in ​​1992 and silver medal. That moment always comes up in my mind.

You managed to row at a total of six Olympic Games. What would be your biggest experience under the olympic circles?

Probably starting at my first Games in Seoul. That was, for me, the first step in the big world of sports. Until then, furtherst I traveled was Yugoslavia and Germany, and all of a sudden I went to Korea. To me it was exotic, it was something completely new. In addition, the Koreans prepared the perfect Games, just perfect. From my point of view, the best Games. The olympic atmosphere breathed in the Games literally at every turn. Until today, this is a great experience for me.

Out of all the races you've raced in, is there one that is distinctly down in your memory and that you appreciate a lot?

There were more of those races, but one of them was the one in 2001 at the World Championship in Lucerne. I took bronze there, but with Olaf Tufte’s first and Iztok Čop in second, we all finished within less than a second. For me that was the closest to gold.

You have silver medal from Olympic Games, the other four silvers from World Championships. Only the famous golden cherry was missing. Wouldn’t you sweep one of the silvers for one gold?

No, I wouldn’t. That's what it meant to be. I do not regret anything and I would not sweep anything. There were three moments when the first just escaped me and I could had won gold. But as I say, it was probably given.

You have already revealed that you are not actually done with rowing. How are you enjoying it today?

 That’s how it is. I did not step out. When I finished my active rowing, I did three years of service and boat repair, then I went to Račice as a technical director, or more as a manager. Last September I have move