Growing up Petr Málek played football in the Czechoslovak youth league before his uncle took him to a shooting range. From then on Málek focused on sports shooting, becoming one of the best skeet shooters in the country. In 1988 he was selected to represent Czechoslovakia at the Seoul Olympics, where he tied for 20th after failing to make the final. Despite his inauspicious start, just two years later he became a world champion, winning gold in the team skeet event in Moskva. Málek followed that up with a team bronze and silver in 1991 and 1998, respectively, followed by another team gold in 2001. One year earlier, now representing the Czech Republic, Málek won silver at the Sydney Olympics, finishing just two points behind Mykola Milchev (UKR).
In addition to his World and Olympic medals Málek also won three golds at the European Championships. After his shooting career he became a successful coach, working with the Cyprus national team for more than eight years. At the time of his death he was based in Kuwait, where he coached their national team.
Czechia 
Czechoslovakia