Jaroslav Petrouš: "I would like to see the Paralympics one day."
Author: Jaroslav Petrouš is a Czech para-athlete who underwent voluntary leg amputation. He is a discus thrower and in this discipline he is at the top of the world. He founded the Handicap Coffee brand and is also involved in charity work in the KlaPeto Foundation.
You currentlyhave health complications and sport has to go on the back burner. What happened?
Unfortunately, it's true. My ankle started to swell and gradually change color. I had to go to the hospital and the diagnosis was Erysipelas. It's an infectious disease, and unfortunately the course is not one of the milder ones. It has affected not only the skin but also the subcutaneous tissue. I have been taking antibiotics in all forms for a week now and will continue for at least one more. Hopefully the leg will start to heal soon.
A promising seasonthis yearisinterrupted.Is there any chance you'll be back on the sports field this year?
This is my 14th season of athletics and I would say it has gone more than well. I still have treatment and recovery ahead of me, so getting back into competition will be tough. But I believe in a comeback, even though I will have to start with rough training at the Form Factory fitness centers again first.
What wereyour goals for thisseason?
I might say I have achieved them. I managed to win the discus throw at the prestigious Zlatá tretra Ostrava competition and to win for the second time perhaps the most beautiful trophy in the world. In May I won the Grand Prix in Poland and broke my Czech record, which is currently 45.94m. I also defended the titles of Czech Republic Champion in two associations. I should be defending my gold medal at the World Games in Portugal in October, so I'm confident I'll be able to get myself together, get ready and fight!
And a bit immodestly, I am number one in the world tables in the discus throw in my category.
You have many titles in sport. Which is the most valuable?
My daughter was counting recently, and there might be thirty of them. But I value each one and the other races I've won around the world. But I would put winning the World Games in the UAE in 2019 highest. Hearing the national anthem for the winner is the biggest reward.
The Paralympics start in a few weeks. Aren't you sorry that the discus throw is not on the Paralympics programme and is there a possibilitythatyour eventwill be included again inthe future?
Sorry, still. It's been a long time, so it's kind of dulled down. It's a wish, a holiday and the greatest race for any disabled athlete. Although I have to say, under the current conditions, I'm probably glad I don't have to be there. Starting somewhere where the local population doesn't want you? Common sense should have won out here, not politics and money. The health of not only the athletes should come first. And if the discus throw returns to the PH? I am in contact with several discus throwers across continents and almost all associations have put in a request to the IPC for reinstatement. I will believe that our Paralympic committee has done so as well.
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Along with top sports, you are into coffee. You have your own brand of Handicap Cofee. Where did the idea of doing coffee come from?
I was basically introduced to coffee by my mother back in 2002. I have been doing it professionally ever since. I was actually a National Coffee Champion before I was a National Athletics Champion. In 2004, I won the prestigious Master of Coffee competition and was named Barista of the Year. I also represented the Czech Republic at the World Championships in the USA. For seventeen years I worked as an employee in managerial positions for various companies. Last year I decided to start my own coffee brand. Covid times are not very good for development, but I believe that soon things will start to improve. Although it will probably be a long way to "normal".
You've linked coffee to disability and it has a story....
The name for my coffee was right up my alley due to my medical condition. HANDICAP COFFEE. I approached my friend Martin Zach and we set up a sheltered workshop. We roast our own coffee at our friends in Kladno. We each have our own with our own life story. My coffee is called One Leg edition and Martin's Wheelchair edition. I am happy that we send 10% of the coffee sales to the transparent account of the KlaPeto Foundation.
That's why we have the slogan "coffee that helps" on our packaging.
Another of your activities is the KlaPetoFoundation and theannual climb to Sněžka. What activities does the Foundation do ?
A few days after my amputation in the hospital, I started thinking about how to help. With a friend, I came up with the charity project "Climb to Sněžka". This year was the ninth year. In 2013, I approached Kateřina Klasnová and we founded the KlaPeto Foundation. We work without remuneration and support children with disabilities. All the proceeds from the charity event each year go towards rehabilitation stays and compensatory aids that are not covered by insurance companies. In seven years, our foundation has distributed more than seven million crowns. I'm really proud of that.
Text: editors of Nero Drinks
Photo: Josef Adlt @josefadlt
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