Marie Kovářová was active in the Sokol gymnastics movement in Czechoslovakia from a young age, but her career was interrupted by World War II. Thus the pinnacle of her career came when she was selected to represent her country at the 1948 London Olympics, where she won a gold medal in the team all-around. This was to be her only major international appearance, however, as Czechoslovakia banned the Sokol movement in the 1950s and Kovářová was forced to retire from active competition. Nonetheless, she remained active in skiing and tennis into her 80s and 90s.
Czechoslovakia
Czechia