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Mass gymnastics displays in Czechoslovakia (1955–1990) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Spartakiads or Spartakiades[1] in Czechoslovakia (Czech and Slovak: Spartakiáda) were mass gymnastics events, designed to celebrate the Red Army's liberation of Czechoslovakia in 1945.[2] The name refers to the 1921 Prague Spartakiad organised by the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.[3] They were organised by the Communist government as a replacement of the similar Sokol gatherings, which were disapproved by the regime and discontinued after World War II.[4] The Spartakiads took place at the Strahov Stadium, the largest stadium ever built and the venue of the last pre-war Sokol gathering.[5] Most of the organisers of the Spartakiads were former Sokol officials.[3]
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|
Spartakiad | |
---|---|
Status | Inactive |
Genre | Sports event |
Location(s) | Prague |
Country | Czechoslovak Socialist Republic |
Inaugurated | 1955 |
Most recent | 1990 |
Sponsor | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia |
The first Spartakiad took place in 1955, and was subsequently held every five years.[2] The Spartakiad scheduled for 1970 was canceled in the wake of the Prague Spring and the beginning of normalization.[6] Preparations for the 1990 Spartakiad were interrupted by the Velvet Revolution, but the event still took place as the "Prague Sports Games", albeit on a much smaller scale than the previous ones.[7]
The Spartakiads involved large numbers of people; for example, at the 1960 Spartakiad about 750,000 gymnasts from the whole country took part and over 2,000,000 spectators witnessed the event.[8] The last major edition in 1985 saw around 160,000 people perform across fifteen demonstrations.[9]
Before each Spartakiad, local Spartakiads were held, with juries selecting the best gymnasts from each region for the national event.[9] Men and women of all ages practiced and performed exercise routines. Appearance was originally mandatory for students and servicemen of the armed forces and police.[10] During the Normalization years, it became more voluntary.[11]
The 1985 Spartakiad notably originated the Michal David pop song Poupata (Flower Buds), which remains popular in the Czech Republic today[12] and inspired a 2011 film of the same name.[13]
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