Václav Antoš

Václav Antoš was a distance freestyle swimmer who competed at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics. He was a multiple Czechoslovak champion, also winning the Race Across Praha in 1924 and 1929. Antoš won a bronze medal in the 400 freestyle at the 1927 European Championships. During his career he set several Czechoslovak national records.

In 1936 Antoš led several Czechoslovak athletes to the People’s Games in Barcelona, which were organized in protest of the 1936 Berlin Olympics. This was not well received by the Nazis and he was arrested by them in 1940. After being imprisoned in Pankrác, Bautzen, Saxon Kamenice, Leipzig, and Dresden, he was eventually released by a judgment of the People’s Court, but he remained under Gestapo supervision until the end of the war. After the War, Antoš returned to swimming, coaching children and youth, and in later years he also worked as a referee for aquatic sports.