Sportswoman VŠPJ Bc. Lucie Čechová was led to archery by video games and fantasy

Voters in the poll chose from a total of five VŠPJ students, who were nominated by the VŠPJ Sports Cabinet. The title of VŠPJ female athlete, who, according to them, shone the most in this academic year with her performances, was finally awarded to the only female nominee, Bc. Lucie Čechová, who competes in archery. What were her immediate feelings when she learned of her win? "I won't lie, I absolutely did not expect that such an "alternative" sport as archery could appeal to so many voters. At first I wondered if it was some kind of joke. But I'm very happy that my sport got some attention. Even the sports of the guys I had the honor of competing against in the poll aren't the ones that fill the front pages of the newspaper. It is wonderful that the school supports us in this way and helps the visibility of even the less popular sports, for that I am very grateful," says Lucie Čechová.

Lucie Čechová has achieved significant success in her discipline right from the start of 2024. As a representative of VŠPJ and TJ Jiskra Humpolec she took the 3rd place at the 12th Czech National Championship. Academic Championship of the Czech Republic 2024 in indoor archery, which took place on 12th January in Olomouc. At the 33rd Czech Indoor Archery Championship, which took place from 16th to 18th February in Nymburk, she also managed to take 4th place in the women's team category together with other members of the TJ Jiskra Humpolec team. Now the indoor season, her most successful ever, is coming to an end and she will slowly move on to outdoor events. "Right from the beginning of the season I will throw myself into big cup competitions, it will be a first for me. Then the goal is clear, the academic national championships and the adult national championships. Secondary, also the long-term competitions: the ladder and the cup. The next chapter is the team competitions, with my current results it looks like I will get back to the league, the highest Czech competition. I would also like to try field and 3D archery," sums up Lucie Čechová's plans and prospects for the next season.

Lucie has been shooting for a relatively short time, having started shooting in 2019. "Back then I was looking for a sport that I could do on my own and not spoil it for others. I love fantasy, half of my video game characters are elves with bows. When I found out there was an archery club in my home town, the only one in the Highlands at the time, the choice was clear. I owe a lot to Míra Hava and Matýsk Vavřička, my two coaches, mentors, supports and most of all friends, without whom I would have broken my bow in half and stuck it to tomatoes long ago," says Lucie with a smile. And what does she enjoy most about this extremely technical sport? "Every inch and every angle plays a part in setting up, retrieving, anchoring and releasing. When one concentrates on one technical thing, one forgets three others at the same time. Mentality also plays a huge role, you just have to be a little bit distracted and the arrows fly wherever they want. It's not easy to combine technique, psyche and muscular endurance and for a long time I couldn't do it, until recently I've managed to put everything together like puzzle pieces. So the answer is that what I enjoy most is to keep improving, working on myself and pushing myself further."

Lucie Čechová is currently studying in the 4th semester of the combined form of the Bachelor's degree in Tourism. She switched to combined studies at the beginning of this academic year when she started working full-time at the Municipal Cultural and Information Centre in Humpolec. "It's a lovely job, it just spills over into my weekends sometimes, so it's a bit of a challenge to combine it with school. Besides that, I have a degree in Czech language and literature and am self-employed as a proofreader. The rest of my time is divided between my hobbies. Of course, it is archery, but also volleyball or geocaching," says Lucie and continues. My free time is filled with PlayStation and books. I like to say that I live life at the rate of 50 hours a day."