Ferdinand Balcárek

Biographical information

RolesCompeted in Olympic Games
SexMale
Full nameFerdinand•Balcárek
Used nameFerdinand•Balcárek
Born21 August 1904 in Praha (Prague), Hlavní město Praha (CZE)
Died16 January 1975 in Praha (Prague), Hlavní město Praha (CZE)
NOC Czechoslovakia

Biography

Ferdinand Balcárek was a Czech architect and designer, focusing on interior design and decoration. He worked together with Karel Kopp on a number of projects. Initially, the great stadium in Strahov was a wooden construction, but Alois Dryák won a competition to modernize the stadium with a classic design. Balcárek and Kopp were awarded second place for the plans they submitted to the 1932 Olympic Art Competition.

After Dryák´s death in 1932, the planning work was finally entrusted to Balcárek and Kopp, and the upgrade was completed between 1932-38, with the wooden structure converted to reinforced concrete and brick. The northern and southern grandstands, one of his 1948 entries, were already planned in 1937 and ultimately built in 1946-48 for the now renamed Masaryk Stadium complex and further expanded in 1975. With a surface area of more than 63,000 m² and a capacity of up to 250,000 spectators, it is considered the largest stadium ever built. Here, mainly major events of the Sokol Movement and, after World War II, the Spartakiades took place. Although parts of the stadium have now deteriorated, it is on the World Heritage list of UNESCO.

The adjacent athletics stadium – the work submitted in 1932 – was built after the construction of the large stadium in 1931-35, according to the Dryák’s concept, by Balcárek and Kopp. Most interesting was the western tribune of reinforced concrete. From 1975-78, the stadium was rebuilt for the needs of the European Athletics Championships. Information about the “Project for a sports center in the city of Pisek” is not available.

Balcárek studied at the Technical University in Praha (Prague). Prior to World War II, he took part in more than 110 architecture competitions. In the 1950s, he was head of the Department for Residential Construction developing a standardization of composition and organization of urban neighborhoods.

Results

Games Discipline (Sport) / Event NOC / Team Pos Medal As
1932 Summer Olympics Art Competitions TCH Ferdinand Balcárek
Architecture, Further Entries, Open (Olympic) Karel Kopp AC
1948 Summer Olympics Art Competitions TCH Ferdinand Balcárek
Architecture, Further Entries, Open (Olympic) AC
Architecture, Further Entries, Open (Olympic) AC