Josef Rossler-Orovsky

Rossler-Orovsky in a skiing group.

Josef Rössler-Ořovský (June 29, 1869, in Prague - January 17, 1933, in Prague) was a versatile Czech athlete and capable sports organizer.

He is still one of the greatest personalities in Czech sport. He introduced variety of sports in the Czech lands. He collaborated in the establishment of numerous sports clubs and sports federations. He was above all a great rower, but he was also active in speed skating, ice hockey, tennis, yachting, light and heavy athletics, soccer and canoeing.

A photo of Rossler-Orovsky.

In 1881, at a mere 12 years of age, he and several classmates established the skating club BZK Praha. He published the rules of bandy hockey in the Sportovni obzor in 1895. Later on in 1895, the obzor reported the lineups from an inter-club hockey match played by BZK. The club was one of the most important early hockey teams in Bohemia.

He was also an excellent diplomat, speaking several languages, and it was mainly thanks to his efforts (along with Dr. Jiri Guth-Jarkovským ), that the Czech athletes participated in the Summer Olympics in 1912 in Stockholm as an independent country (Bohemia was part of Austria-Hungary at the time).

References

• KÖSSL, Jiří; KRÁTKÝ, František; MAREK, Jaroslav. Dějiny tělesné výchovy II.. Praha : Olympia, 1986. Kapitola Rozvoj sportovního hnutí, p. 73.
• AUTORSKÝ KOLEKTIV. Československá filatelie Praha 88. Praha : Rapid, 1988. Kapitola Sto let organizované filatelie v Československu, p. 9.