The Paris Games are over, Czech team wins five medals

The Olympic flame on the large balloon created with the use of light and water mist in the centre of Paris was slowly put out. The tiny flame of the genuine fire lit in Olympia, Greece, set off on its final journey to the Stade de France, where the closing ceremony of the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad was taking place. The Czech team won five medals, three of them gold, and achieved a number of other excellent results. Martin Fuksa and Nikola Ogrodníková, two medallists, carried the flag at the closing ceremony.

"It was amazing and it happened so fast. All of a sudden we were on the field. I'm so glad I had the honour of carrying the flag," Ogrodniková said.

She won bronze for the Czech team in the javelin throw. The team of épée fencers sensationally grabbed third place as well, the three golds were won by speed canoeist Martin Fuksa, tennis players Kateřina Siniaková and Tomáš Macháč in the mixed doubles and kayaker Josef Dostál, who thus added the most valuable medal to one silver and three bronzes from the three previous Games. "I couldn't believe it at the finish line," admitted the 31-year-old athlete.

We’re naturally satisfied with the three golds, it’s excellent.

"The Games were very emotionally demanding. The Czech team had very few medals, so I felt that it would be nice to win another and help the Czech Republic," he said. "I knew that if I managed to deliver what we had been working on, it could result in a medal."

Overall, the Czech team with a total of three gold and two bronze medals placed 28th in the ranking of nations. "We’re naturally satisfied with the three golds, it’s excellent," said Jiří Kejval, President of the Czech NOC. But we must not forget the five fourth-place finishes and a number of other top-level results.

The Paris 2024 Games brought a fantastic atmosphere to packed venues right in the heart of the city. 9.5 million tickets were sold. One million people watched the cycling races in the city centre for free. Tens of thousands ran the route of the Olympic marathon. Fans greeted the champions on the Trocadéro overlooking the Eiffel Tower, under which beach volleyball was played. The Paris Olympics will stay in the hearts of athletes and fans alike as an event with venues surrounded by iconic monuments and with fantastic audiences.