Frank Prihoda
Personal information
Birth nameFrantišek Příhoda
Born(1921-07-08)8 July 1921
Prague, Czechoslovakia
Died10 November 2022(2022-11-10) (aged 101)
Melbourne, Australia
Sport
Country AUS
SportAlpine Skiing
Event1956 Winter Olympics

Frank Prihoda (born as František Příhoda; 8 July 1921 – 10 November 2022) was a Czechoslovak-born Australian alpine skier who competed in the 1956 Winter Olympics. Until his death in November 2022, he was Australia's oldest living former Olympian.[1]

Biography

Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic), in 1921, Prihoda learned to ski with his sister and Olympic skier, Alexandra Nekvapilová's help[2] and had his 1st downhill race in 1937.[3] In 1936, a year before his downhill race of 1937, Frank began ski racing with the Czechoslovak Ski Federation squad.[3] Also in 1937 when aged 16, his parents died and he took over the family's artificial flower manufacturing business, managing it throughout World War II.[2]

Along with Alexandra Nekvapilová and her husband Karel, he defected from Czechoslovakia in 1948, when it became a communist country, first travelling to Austria and then to Australia where he settled. There, they started one of the first ski-lodge businesses in Thredbo, New South Wales.[4] In 1950, Frank and his family boarded a ship to emigrate to Australia, skis in tow, arriving in Melbourne, and began working in manufacturing artificial flowers before moving over to the furniture and textile trades.[3] In 1956, he participated in the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.[2]

In 1958, Prihoda became chairman of the race committee of the Victorian Ski Association, before moving to Thredbo to join his family in 1974, where he owned a shop until 2001 at age 80. A year before the closing, in 2000, he carried the Olympic Torch in Thredbo, lighting the cauldron on the Village Green. Prihoda still skied until he became 90 years old.[2]

In 2020, a ski run was named after Prihoda.[3] Prihoda died on 10 November 2022, at the age of 101.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Frank Prihoda". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 5 February 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Australia's oldest living Olympian, Frank Prihoda, turns 100 today". ABC. 8 July 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Katrina Condie, "Thredbo's Olympic legend Frank Prihoda celebrates 100th birthday with advice to be adventurous". About Regional. 7 July 2021.
  4. ↑ Webb, Chrissi (18 June 2014). "Treasured memories of the Angel of Thredbo".
  5. ↑ "AOC mourns the passing of Australia's oldest Olympian Frank Prihoda". AOC. 10 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
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