Gabriela Soukalová facts for kids

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Gabriela Soukalová

Gabriela Soukalová (2019)
Personal information
Born	(1989-11-01) 1 November 1989 (age 35) Jablonec nad Nisou, Czechoslovakia
Height	1.70 m
Weight	61 kg
Website	http://gabionline.cz/
Professional information
Sport	Biathlon
Club	SG Jablonec nad Nisou
Skis	Fischer
World Cup debut	11 December 2009
Olympic Games
Teams	2 (2010, 2014)
Medals	2 (0 gold)
World Championships
Teams	5 (2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017)
Medals	6 (2 gold)
World Cup
Seasons	8 (2009/10–2016/17)
Individual victories	17
All victories	23
Individual podiums	39
All podiums	56
Overall titles	1 (2015–16)
Discipline titles	6: 1 individual (2013–14) 2 sprint (2015–16, 2016–17) 1 pursuit (2015–16) 2 mass start (2015–16, 2016–17)
Medal record Women's biathlon Representing  Czech Republic Olympic Games Silver 2014 Sochi 12.5 km mass start Silver 2014 Sochi Mixed relay Bronze 2014 Sochi 4 x 6 km relay World Championships Gold 2015 Kontiolahti Mixed relay Gold 2017 Hochfilzen 7.5 km sprint Silver 2015 Kontiolahti 15 km individual Silver 2017 Hochfilzen 15 km individual Bronze 2013 Nové Město Mixed relay Bronze 2017 Hochfilzen 10 km pursuit Junior World Championships Gold 2009 Canmore 3 × 6 km relay European Championships Silver 2011 Ridnaun 7.5 km sprint

Gabriela Soukalová, also known as Gabriela Koukalová, is a famous former Czech biathlete. She was born on November 1, 1989, in Jablonec nad Nisou, which was then part of Czechoslovakia. After her sports career, she became a television presenter.

Gabriela won three Olympic medals at the 2014 Sochi Games. She also became a two-time World Champion. She won a gold medal in 2015 in the mixed relay and another gold in 2017 in the 7.5 km sprint race. In the 2015/2016 World Cup season, she was the overall champion. She also won six special "Crystal Globes" for being the best in different biathlon types.

Gabriela's Biathlon Journey

Gabriela Soukalová started her biathlon career in 2005. By 2007, she was part of the national team. In 2008, she competed in the Junior World Championship. At first, her shooting and skiing were not as strong as other athletes. Her best result was 22nd place.

However, her coaches believed in her. They gave her more chances in international competitions. Her skills improved a lot. Even with some shooting difficulties, she helped the Czech women's relay team win a gold medal. This happened at the 2009 Junior World Championships.

Starting in the World Cup

Gabriela made her first appearance in the Biathlon World Cup in December 2009. Her coaches then sent her back to the IBU Cup, which is a lower level of competition. But she quickly showed great results there. She even won a silver medal in the sprint at the 2011 European Championships. Because of her strong performance, she was chosen to represent the Czech Republic again in the World Cup and at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Her first big success came in December 2011. She helped the Czech team get second place in a World Cup mixed relay race in Austria. During the 2012–13 season, she won four races in the Biathlon World Cup. She added three more wins in the 2013–14 World Cup season.

Olympic and World Championship Success

At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Gabriela had amazing results. She finished fourth in two races: the 10 km pursuit and the 15 km individual. Then, she won two silver medals! One was in the 12.5 km mass start race. The other was in the mixed relay, where she competed with her teammates Veronika Vítková, Jaroslav Soukup, and Ondřej Moravec.

In 2015, at the World Championships in Kontiolahti, Gabriela won her first World Championship title. This was in the mixed relay, as part of the successful Czech team. She also won a silver medal in the individual race, making it her second medal at those championships. By the end of the 2014/15 World Cup season, she was ranked sixth overall.

Leading the World Cup

The 2015/2016 season was very strong for Gabriela. She showed amazing consistency, always finishing in the top 11. She led the World Cup standings for the entire season. On January 16, 2016, she won her tenth World Cup victory in the 12.5 km mass start. She also helped her team win a silver medal in a relay race.

In February 2016, she had a perfect performance in a sprint race in the USA. This led to two more gold medals in the 10 km pursuit and the 4x6 km relay. She won the "small Crystal Globe" for sprint races and another for mass start races. On March 20, 2016, she won the overall "Crystal Globe" for the 2015/2016 World Cup season. This meant she was the best biathlete of the year!

The 2016/2017 season also started well for her. She earned a third place in a sprint race and then won the pursuit race. She also won a mass start race in December 2016.

Retirement and Hall of Fame

On December 21, 2017, Gabriela became the first biathlete to be named Czech Sportsperson of the Year. Due to a leg injury, she could not compete in the 2017/2018 season. She later announced that she might not return to the World Cup. On May 28, 2019, she officially announced her retirement from biathlon.

On February 16, 2024, Gabriela Soukalová was honored by being added to the IBU Hall of Fame. This is a special place for the greatest biathletes of all time.

Personal Life

Gabriela comes from a family of athletes. Her mother, Gabriela Svobodová, was a cross-country skier. Her mother won an Olympic silver medal in 1984. Later, her mother helped her as a personal trainer.

In 2014, Gabriela started dating Petr Koukal, a professional badminton player. They got married on May 13, 2016. They later divorced in 2020.

In April 2018, she published her autobiography called Jiná, which means Different. In the book, she shared her experiences with health challenges during her career.

On March 1, 2021, Gabriela announced she was expecting a baby with her new partner, Miloš Kadeřábek. She also returned to using her birth name, Soukalová.

A documentary about Gabriela, called Gabriela Soukalová: Pravda se pořád vyplatí (Gabriela Soukalová: The truth always pays off), premiered on March 5, 2024. She also sang a duet for the documentary called Teď budu mluvit já (Now I will speak).

Biathlon Results

All results are from the International Biathlon Union.

Olympic Games

• 3 medals (2 silver, 1 bronze)

Event	Individual	Sprint	Pursuit	Mass start	Relay	Mixed relay
2010 Vancouver	60th	–	–	–	16th	N/A
2014 Sochi	4th	29th	4th	Silver	Bronze	Silver
2018 Pyeongchang	injured: did not compete

a. The mixed relay was added as an event in 2014.

World Championships

• 6 medals (2 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze)

Event	Individual	Sprint	Pursuit	Mass start	Relay	Mixed relay
2010 Khanty-Mansiysk	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	7th
2011 Khanty-Mansiysk	47th	25th	22nd	–	11th	11th
2013 Nové Město	12th	14th	20th	18th	10th	Bronze
2015 Kontiolahti	Silver	18th	5th	5th	8th	Gold
2016 Oslo	5th	4th	11th	4th	6th	6th
2017 Hochfilzen	Silver	Gold	Bronze	4th	4th	7th

a. During Olympic seasons, competitions are only held for events not in the Olympics.

World Cup Season Results

Here are Gabriela's overall results in the Biathlon World Cup seasons:

Individual Victories

Gabriela won 17 individual races in her career:

No.	Season	Date	Location	Discipline	Level
1	2012/13	14 December 2012	Pokljuka, Slovenia	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
2		14 March 2013	Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
3		16 March 2013	Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia	10 km pursuit	World Cup
4		17 March 2013	Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia	12.5 km mass start	World Cup
5	2013/14	28 November 2013	Östersund, Sweden	15 km individual	World Cup
6		10 January 2014	Ruhpolding, Germany	15 km individual	World Cup
7		12 January 2014	Ruhpolding, Germany	10 km pursuit	World Cup
8	2014/15	18 December 2014	Pokljuka, Slovenia	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
9	2015/16	2 December 2015	Östersund, Sweden	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
10		16 January 2016	Ruhpolding, Germany	12.5 km mass start	World Cup
11		11 February 2016	Presque Isle, USA	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
12		12 February 2016	Presque Isle, USA	10 km pursuit	World Cup
13	2016/17	4 December 2016	Östersund, Sweden	10 km pursuit	World Cup
14		18 December 2016	Nové Město, Czech Republic	12.5 km mass start	World Cup
15		6 January 2017	Oberhof, Germany	7.5 km sprint	World Cup
16		8 January 2017	Oberhof, Germany	12.5 km mass start	World Cup
17		10 February 2017	Hochfilzen, Austria	7.5 km sprint	World Championships

Relay Victories

Gabriela also won 6 relay races with her teammates:

No.	Season	Date	Location	Discipline	Level	Teammates
1	2013/14	24 November 2013	Östersund, Sweden	Mixed 2x6+2x7.5 km relay	World Cup	Vítková / Vítek / Moravec
2	2014/15	7 January 2015	Oberhof, Germany	4x6 km relay	World Cup	Puskarčíková / Landová / Vítková
3		14 January 2015	Ruhpolding, Germany	4x6 km relay	World Cup	Puskarčíková / Landová / Vítková
4		15 February 2015	Holmenkollen, Norway	4x6 km Relay	World Cup	Puskarčíková / Landová / Vítková
5		5 March 2015	Kontiolahti, Finland	Mixed 2x6+2x7.5 km relay	World Championships	Vítková / Šlesingr / Moravec
6	2015/16	14 February 2016	Presque Isle, USA	4x6 km relay	World Cup	Puskarčíková / Charvátová / Vítková

See also

In Spanish: Gabriela Soukalová para niños