Petr Koukal (badminton)

Petr Koukal (Czech pronunciation: [ˈpɛtr̩ ˈkoukal]; born 14 December 1985) is a Czech professional badminton player.

This article is about badminton player. For ice hockey player, see Petr Koukal (ice hockey).
Petr Koukal
Personal information
Country Czech Republic
Born (1985-12-14) 14 December 1985
Hořovice, Czech Republic
Height1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)
Weight90 kg (198 lb)
Men's singles
Highest ranking38 (23 Sep 2010)
Current ranking87 (17 Nov 2016)
BWF profile

Biography

Koukal started playing badminton in 1993, at a club owned by his father in Hořovice, and made his debut in the international tournament in 2000.[1] In 2003 he was selected to join the national team, and at the same year, he won the mixed doubles title at the national championships partnered with Markéta Koudelková. Until 2016, he has collected 9 national titles, where 8 of them won in the men's singles event.[1][2] Koukal first competed at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.[3]

In 2010, Koukal was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent a successful therapy.[3][4] He was awarded 2011 Fair Play Award, in Brno, Czech Republic.[1] In July 2012, Czech Olympic Committee announced selection of Koukal for flag bearer of Czech team at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, citing him as an example of sport role in recovery from a grave illness and of return to competition at top level.[3][5][6]

In 2016, Petr Koukal was awarded as the secondary recipient of the Hanno R. Ellenbogen Citizenship Award for his commitment and help to men with testicular cancer through his foundation. In May 2016, Czech biathlete Gabriela Soukalová became his spouse;[7] they divorced in late 2020. He made his third appearance at the Summer Olympics through the Tripartite Commission Invitation.[3][8]

Achievements

BWF Grand Prix

The BWF Grand Prix has two levels: Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It is a series of badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007.

Men's Singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2014 U.S. Grand Prix Chinese Taipei Hsu Jen-hao 19–21, 21–19, 8–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
  BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament
  BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series

Men's Singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result
2011 Czech International Poland Przemyslaw Wacha 19–21, 16–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2011 Slovak Open Poland Hubert Paczek 21–11, 21–15 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2009 Czech International Ukraine Dmytro Zavadsky 21–17, 21–19 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2007 Iceland International Portugal Marco Vasconcelos 21–17, 21–16 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
2007 Turkey International Denmark Hans-Kristian Vittinghus 21–23, 15–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2007 Le Volant d'Or de Toulouse Poland Przemyslaw Wacha 13–21, 17–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2007 Hatzor International Japan Sho Sasaki 15–21, 16–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2006 Le Volant d'Or de Toulouse Finland Ville Lång 18–21, 15–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up
2004 Lithuanian International Poland Rafal Hawel 15–3, 13–15, 4–15 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up

Mixed Doubles

Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result
2004 Lithuanian International Czech Republic Martina Benešová Czech Republic Stanislav Kohoutek
Lithuania Akvilė Stapušaitytė		 15–3, 15–13 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner
  BWF International Challenge tournament
  BWF International Series tournament

Other
  • 2006 - Spanish International: Men's singles (quarter final)
  • 2006 - Austrian International: Men's singles (quarter final)
  • 2006 - Austrian International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2005 - Hungarian International: Men's singles (semi final)
  • 2005 - Babolat Slovak International: Men's singles (semi final)
  • 2005 - Babolat Slovak International: Mixed doubles (semi final)
  • 2003 - Slovenia International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Slovak International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Czech International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Sofiisk Imoti JSC Bulgarian International: Mixed doubles (semi final)
  • 2002 - Slovak International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)

References
  1. "Players: Petr Koukal". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  2. "Czech Republic: Cesky Badmintonovy Svaz". Badminton Europe. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  3. "Petr Koukal: "When I think back to carrying the flag in London, I still get goosebumps."". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  4. "Badminton: Petr Koukal overcomes cancer to compete at London 2012". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-26. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  5. Michal Osoba (2012-07-03). "Odtajněno: českou vlajku v Londýně ponese badmintonista Koukal". Právo (in Czech). Retrieved 2012-07-03.
  6. "Badmintonista Koukal porazil rakovinu a bude vlajkonošem olympijské výpravy". Czech Olympic Committee (in Czech). 2012-07-03. Archived from the original on 2012-07-11. Retrieved 2012-07-03.
  7. "Sportovní svatba roku: Koukal a Soukalová se tajně vzali" (in Czech). iDNES.cz. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  8. "Trio Get Rio 2016 Tripartite Places". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 22 March 2018.


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