Petr Koukal (Czech pronunciation: [ˈpɛtr̩ˈkoukal]; born 14 December 1985) is a Czech professional badminton player.

Biography

Koukal started playing badminton in 1993, at a club owned by his father in Hořovice, and made his debut in the international tournament in 2000. In 2003 he was selected to join the national team, and at the same year, he won the mixed doubles title at the national championships partnered with Markéta Koudelková. Until 2016, he has collected 9 national titles, where 8 of them won in the men's singles event. Koukal first competed at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

In 2010, Koukal was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent a successful therapy. He was awarded 2011 Fair Play Award, in Brno, Czech Republic. In July 2012, Czech Olympic Committee announced selection of Koukal for flag bearer of Czech team at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, citing him as an example of sport role in recovery from a grave illness and of return to competition at top level.

In 2016, Petr Koukal was awarded as the secondary recipient of the Hanno R. Ellenbogen Citizenship Award for his commitment and help to men with testicular cancer through his foundation. In May 2016, Koukal married Czech biathlete Gabriela Soukalová ; they divorced in late 2020. He made his third appearance at the Summer Olympics through the Tripartite Commission Invitation.

Achievements

BWF Grand Prix

The BWF Grand Prix has two levels: Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It is a series of badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007.

Men's Singles

YearTournamentOpponentScoreResult
2014U.S. Grand PrixChinese Taipei Hsu Jen-hao19–21, 21–19, 8–21Runner-up

BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament

BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series

Men's Singles

YearTournamentOpponentScoreResult
2011Czech InternationalPoland Przemyslaw Wacha19–21, 16–21Runner-up
2011Slovak OpenPoland Hubert Paczek21–11, 21–15Winner
2009Czech InternationalUkraine Dmytro Zavadsky21–17, 21–19Winner
2007Iceland InternationalPortugal Marco Vasconcelos21–17, 21–16Winner
2007Turkey InternationalDenmark Hans-Kristian Vittinghus21–23, 15–21Runner-up
2007Le Volant d'Or de ToulousePoland Przemyslaw Wacha13–21, 17–21Runner-up
2007Hatzor InternationalJapan Sho Sasaki15–21, 16–21Runner-up
2006Le Volant d'Or de ToulouseFinland Ville Lång18–21, 15–21Runner-up
2004Lithuanian InternationalPoland Rafal Hawel15–3, 13–15, 4–15Runner-up

Mixed Doubles

YearTournamentPartnerOpponentScoreResult
2004Lithuanian InternationalCzech Republic Martina BenešováCzech Republic Stanislav Kohoutek Lithuania Akvilė Stapušaitytė15–3, 15–13Winner

BWF International Challenge tournament

BWF International Series tournament

Other

  • 2006 - Spanish International: Men's singles (quarter final)
  • 2006 - Austrian International: Men's singles (quarter final)
  • 2006 - Austrian International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2005 - Hungarian International: Men's singles (semi final)
  • 2005 - Babolat Slovak International: Men's singles (semi final)
  • 2005 - Babolat Slovak International: Mixed doubles (semi final)
  • 2003 - Slovenia International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Slovak International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Czech International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
  • 2003 - Sofiisk Imoti JSC Bulgarian International: Mixed doubles (semi final)
  • 2002 - Slovak International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)

External links

Olympic Games
Preceded byŠtěpánka HilgertováFlagbearer for Czech Republic London 2012Succeeded byLukáš Krpálek