Robert Zmelík’s Olympic triumph helped spark a golden era for Czech decathlon. He inspired future stars like world record holders Tomáš Dvořák and Roman Šebrle.
Jiri Ryba achieved 6th place at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton, Canada, scoring 8332 points. He secured a bronze medal at the 1995 European Junior Championships in Nyíregyháza, Hungary, with 7271 points.