Stanislav Konopásek
Encyclopedia
Stanislav Konopásek was a Czech
professional ice hockey
player.
when he was drafted for LTC Praha in 1935, whom he would play with until 1950. He also played on the national team, winning the 1947 and 1949 World Championships and a silver medal at the 1948 Winter Olympics
in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Konopasek himself scored the winning goal that denied Canada the 1949 Championships.
In the 1948 Olympics, Konopasek also scored the winning goal in a 3-2 win over the United States, tying Canada's record of 7-0-1. They eventually lost to Canada by a single goal.
In 1950, as they were about to get on an airplane to defend their World Championship title in London, he and several of his teammates were charged with trying to leave Czechoslovakia and assaulting state police. Konopasek was sentenced to 12 years in prison for "slandering the republic", later reduced to 5. Other teammates received sentences ranging from six months to 15 years.
After getting out of prison, he then played for Tatra Smíchov (1955–1956), Sparta Praha (1956–1962), and Motorlet Praha (1962–1963), closing his international career with 69 goals in 50 games.
, a Polish team, won a national championship in 1968 while coached by Konopásek.
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player.
Playing career
Konopásek played as a wingerWinger (ice hockey)
Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...
when he was drafted for LTC Praha in 1935, whom he would play with until 1950. He also played on the national team, winning the 1947 and 1949 World Championships and a silver medal at the 1948 Winter Olympics
1948 Winter Olympics
The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been twelve years since the last Winter Games in 1936...
in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Konopasek himself scored the winning goal that denied Canada the 1949 Championships.
In the 1948 Olympics, Konopasek also scored the winning goal in a 3-2 win over the United States, tying Canada's record of 7-0-1. They eventually lost to Canada by a single goal.
In 1950, as they were about to get on an airplane to defend their World Championship title in London, he and several of his teammates were charged with trying to leave Czechoslovakia and assaulting state police. Konopasek was sentenced to 12 years in prison for "slandering the republic", later reduced to 5. Other teammates received sentences ranging from six months to 15 years.
After getting out of prison, he then played for Tatra Smíchov (1955–1956), Sparta Praha (1956–1962), and Motorlet Praha (1962–1963), closing his international career with 69 goals in 50 games.
Coaching career
After finishing his playing career in ice hockey he coached Motorlet Praha (1963–1965), GKS Katowice (1965–1968), and Sparta Praha (1968–1973). GKS KatowiceGKS Katowice
GKS Katowice is a Polish football club based in Katowice, Poland. The club currently plays in the Polish First League.-History:In 1963 in Katowice a special organizational committee was called with the purpose of uniting all the clubs and sporting organizations of city into one large club which...
, a Polish team, won a national championship in 1968 while coached by Konopásek.