113 Czech athletes headed to Paris to compete in 2024 Summer Olympics

A total of 113 Czech athletes will compete in this year's Olympic Games in Paris, which kick off in the French capital next weekend. Expectations are high for a successful medal haul, with local bookmakers contacted by Czech News Agency suggesting the Czech team could bring home up to ten medals at this year's games.

Betting offices are optimistic, anticipating a 10 percent increase in activity compared to the last Olympics in Tokyo in 2021, where Czech athletes secured 11 medals, including four golds. They suggest that the Czech team could bring home between five and ten medals, with two or three of them potentially gold.

"Javelin thrower Jakub Vadlejch, canoeist Martin Fuksa, judoka Lukáš Krpálek, kayaker Jiří Prskavec, tennis players Barbora Krejčíková, Kateřina Siniaková, and Markéta Vondroušová, beach volleyball players David Schweiner and Ondřej Perušič, as well as other athletes are vying for a medal, possibly even a gold one," Tipsport spokesperson Jiří Hadrava told Czech News Agency.

Krejčíková and Siniaková upped expectations after winning both singles and doubles titles, respectively, at Wimbledon last weekend. Other Czech athletes hoping for success at this year's Summer Games include Alexander Choupenitch, who won a bronze in fencing at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

According to bookmakers, the United States is expected to lead the medal tally with around 120 medals, followed by China with 90 and Great Britain with 60. Tennis, basketball, and football are predicted to be the most popular sports for betting. Locally, sports such as judo and canoeing will see increased activity due to the success of prominent Czech athletes.

In the previous Olympics, betting offices like Tipsport, Chance, and Fortuna collected substantial sums from wagers. Tipsport alone gathered around CZK 550 million, while Chance and Fortuna collected CZK 121 million and CZK 400 million, respectively. Fortuna spokesman Petr Šrain mentioned that tennis could be particularly popular among Czech bettors, spurred by Krejčíková's recent Wimbledon triumph.

The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics is scheduled for July 26, with competitions running until August 11. Paris will become just the second city to host the Olympic Games three times. The events will span 28 sports, with breakdancing debuting as a new sport. Baseball, softball, and karate will not be featured this year.