Anonymous and eavesdropping. Martinec recalls his career. Why did they beat him up?<

I was born on December 22, 1949 in Lomnice nad Popelkou. We didn't celebrate my birthday much at home, it was already a part of Christmas. I had a sister and two brothers, the other died. Parents had a farm, fields, cows and other animals. We lived in a house - we all slept in one room, cooking and living in the second, grandmother lived in the third. When collectivization took place in the 1950s, the father resisted for a long time, but then succumbed. He joined the cooperative and eventually became its chairman.

I was used to helping at home. When I was about to go to first grade, I cut my achilles with a scythe. The doctors said that if they had brought me half an hour later, I would have had permanent effects. But it turned out well, although I still remember the pain to this day.

Beginnings on the pond

I started playing hockey at our home in Lomnica on the pond. We didn't have helmets and wore normal mittens. When there was a lot of snow, we always waited for the pond to freeze over. Then we dug up the area, made a hole in the ice, took water from it with a bucket and watered the pond. Then we waited again for it to freeze. I remember we were constantly looking for the puck in the piles of snow around. Only later did we fence the pond ourselves from some boards.

I played both hockey and football in Lomnica, but it started to show that I was luckier in hockey. I played for the youth team, we were in the final of the regional championship, and coach Sekera came to see me in Pardubice. He offered me to go to Pardubice. I guess he really cared about me, because then he came to see me again at the youth and workers' sports games. There we agreed that I would go and learn at the Tesla company there. At that time, most of the youth players were learning in Tesla. So I moved into a hostel and went to my parents only on weekends. Actually, not for whole weekends, I always left Pardubice on Saturday after noon, because work was done on Saturdays then.

In the 1955-56 season, we advanced to the top division, and won it the following year. In time, I started playing as an adult, got married and bought my first car. At that time, all my colleagues in the extra league already had cars, so of course I wanted one too. But at that time there were waiting lists for cars, then they were only sold by voucher. She couldn't be found so I had to wait. But then older cars went on sale, so I quickly borrowed from my parents and bought a Škoda 100.

At the same time, I studied an evening engineering school in Pardubice and then I studied at the Faculty of Education in Hradec Králové. I had an individual study plan there. I think there was some circumvention of the law because us players had to be employed, but I was a student and still got paid. Each time the accountant from Tesla brought them in an envelope and they were distributed to several people.

I managed everything. Teaching, an evening industrial school, a pedagogue in Hradec and the military department, but would I somehow enjoy it too much? Not that. I never even used the title. Only recently I asked the faculty if I could use the master's degree. I received confirmation that I can.

Anonymous people wrote about me

In 1968 I played for the first time for a national team. It was against Canada, we scored a goal, I guess the coaches liked me, and that's how my career in the national team began. I was in it until 1981. There were a lot of matches, I scored quite a few goals, so in retrospect I think I must have been good if I stayed there for so long. I even received some state honors, that was part of sports at that time.

I didn't do well at the Olympics in Lake Placid, I had an injury there. An American came at me from behind and broke my arm. They put me in a cast all the way down. It also affected the psyche of the other boys, we finished fifth.

At that time, someone wrote to me anonymously that I wanted to stay abroad. I never looked for who and why. I only found out about it when I got back. The wife arrived at the airport with the father-in-law and they said that there were policemen at our house and they asked what I took with me, if I took documents, money, certificates.

Vladimír Martinec

And I thought before that it was strange that there was always someone hiding behind me. I went to have a cigar around the corner and immediately someone from management walked by. At that time, two men traveled abroad with us, we called them our eyes and ears. They tried to integrate into the team, but it didn't work very well for them, because we were careful not to cause any trouble. We knew who it was and we were used to it. When someone blew, we then had political training. I remember someone training us at the Palace Hotel. I don't remember his name, but he always had his eyes closed and was explaining how much trust was placed in us and the kind of talk around.

Then we went to a match in Germany and there was one barrier, another barrier at the border. Customs and passport control were behind the other. They took two people off the bus, one was single and the other was getting divorced, so they didn't let them go any further. They were under the impression that they wanted to stay there and sent them home. On the other hand, the fact that some of us had stamps falling out of the gloves didn't bother them so much.

My phones were tapped

After the 1978 World Cup, the boys could start playing abroad. There were conditions that they had to be 32 years old, they had to play 150 games for the national team and they had to be world champions. The next wave was in the eighty-first.

I met the conditions then. They approached me for the World Cup, I could choose to play in America or Canada. I hesitated. I thought about it, but then gave up. I got scared. From flying, from what would happen to the family. I wasn't a hero, so I ended up going to Germany instead of America or Canada.

From 1981 to 1985 I played for Kaufbeuren. We did well. One year we should have advanced to the finals, we were leading 2-0 going into the games, we needed a win. But during the warm-up, when we were driving around the field, three players rushed at us, beat us up, broke my little finger and broke Šťastny's back, so he couldn't move. They just came, cut us down, knocked us out of the game and that was it.

My family was with me in Germany. The funny thing was that we were bugged when we called home. We knew it, it always clicked on the phone. The daughter was calling her friend, they were talking about school and they were eavesdropping. So I always thought that those listening in must be a little confused by the conversation between the two little girls.

I didn't want to argue

Then I returned to Pardubice. As an educator, I went to work at Tesla for two hours and spent the afternoon as a coach for Pardubice juniors. In 1987 and 1988 I was assistant to the first team, then I became head coach and we finally won the title.

But then came November 1989. I had the feeling that most of the players started to focus on something other than what they were getting paid for by the club. I didn't want to argue with them. Suddenly everything was wrong. In the end, we finished in last place and I was logically dismissed as coach.

So I went back to Germany to Kaufbeuren. That was 1991, I was an assistant coach, then a coach. We played a decent season. My wife and son were there with me, he was learning to be a carpenter in Germany. The daughter stayed in the Czech Republic, at that time she was already studying in Prague.

But then two Canadians joined the team and acted like they owned the world. They knew everything best and I didn't get along with them. And since I didn't want to argue again, and besides, I had old parents at home at the time, I decided that we would go back. The son stayed in Germany, got married there, then played for a German club and now trains in Switzerland.

Four golden years

I came home in 1994 and was unemployed. It turns out that I was not here at an important time when functions and places were being divided. I didn't know what I was going to do for a while, then I became an assistant coach in the 20s before taking over as a 20s tool coach.

One day, the president of the association came to me asking me to finish the main season as a coach of the A team. In the end, however, it turned out that Ivan Hlinka was chosen as the head coach, Sláva Lener as the second, and I was only offered the position of another assistant. But I nodded at it. And I didn't regret it. Four glorious years have come. Gold from Nagano. Then gold from Norway, Germany, Russia. I have been to all four and I take it as an honor.

Sometimes I get asked why we did so well back then. I think it was because the players were ninety percent decent and hardworking. There were no problems with them. When we needed to send someone to a meeting or an autograph signing, they didn't make excuses that they couldn't, that they didn't have time. They were like our generation back then. Hard workers, they were good to work with. Well, what about having a beer somewhere? Why not, it wasn't a problem. That was truly the golden era of Czech hockey.

When I look back on my life, I think that maybe there is something to see behind me. I hope so. I have been married for fifty years, I have children, grandchildren. What else could you wish for? In addition, I had a successful career as a player and as a coach. Health still serves. So I think I have nothing to be ashamed of, right?

Tipsport for legends