At 27, biathlete Tereza Vinklárková is experiencing the best season of her career. Nevertheless, she has decided to end her elite biathlon career. While this decision may seem surprising from the outside, she believes it has a clear rationale.

“Deciding to leave at the top feels right for me internally. I have sacrificed the maximum for biathlon,” says Vinklárková. She reminds us that the path to this year’s results has not been easy. For many years, she struggled with health complications and uncertainty. “Through years of health issues, I proved to myself that I can fight for top positions. After years of uncertainty, I long for stability. I don’t want to just hope and wait for my immunity to allow further progress next year.”

Her desire to leave with a sense of accomplishment was crucial. “Further progress would be amazing, and I believe it’s not impossible with stable health, but I want to leave with a feeling of victory.”

Balancing work and sport

A significant factor in her decision is her future outside of sports. “The vision of a dual career is key for me. I don’t intend to undermine the challenges of biathlon or offend athletes who dedicate themselves fully to it. They are doing it right!” she explains to Bezky.net. However, this year’s preparation led her to decide to start earning from sports and build a professional foundation.

Combining work and elite sports is not simple. “Balancing two areas where you give your all, without receiving corresponding financial compensation, was nearly impossible, but thankfully the project worked out.” Nevertheless, this experience showed her that such a model suits her. “This season has practically confirmed that the balance between professional development and elite sports has been fulfilling for me both internally and athletically. The opportunity to realize myself through professional work while competing is now the only sustainable path that protects my future and mental well-being.”

If she cannot systematically connect these two worlds, she is prepared to prioritize a new phase of life.

Personal life

She is no longer with biathlete Tomáš Mikyska. “Tomáš and I have not been a couple for over a year. We grew in mutual support, and the entire Mikyska family provided me with a real home during difficult times, for which I will always be very grateful.” Today, her partner is long-distance skier Aleš Bohatý from the eD system RSJ Team.

This season has been challenging not only in sports but also personally. “The theme of separation is very relevant for us this year, especially due to my long-term absence. Since November, I have been practically away continuously as part of the difficult process of returning to the national team and subsequent participation in the Olympic Games.” Therefore, her partner’s support has meant a lot to her. “In my personal decisive project this season, I received tremendous help and support from Aleš. In this new phase, I could be the support.”

A dream season

The Olympic Games represented one of the peaks of her career. She achieved the second-best placement among Czech biathletes and significantly contributed to the women’s relay team finishing fifth. “I view them as a fulfilled dream. Eleventh place in the long race is a huge success for me. And fifth place in the women’s relay confirmed our collective strength – we showed what we can achieve as a team.”

At her first and last Olympics, she claims to have given it her all. “The girls have set a really high standard, and I am proud that we all ultimately showed what we are capable of. Even though it was my first and last Olympics, I leave with a clear conscience and without the feeling that I forgot to showcase something.”

Diverse preparation influenced by work

Ironically, the awareness that this is her last season helped her achieve the best performances of her career. “I started to enjoy racing more. A relaxed mind combined with diverse and high-quality summer preparation made a difference.” She also incorporated new disciplines into her training. “I dabbled in triathlon, duathlon, and running.”

The academic team around coach Zdeněk Vítek had a significant influence as well. “Thanks to them, I finally stopped feeling like a representative who ‘must’ do something and became an athlete who simply ‘wants’ to.” The atmosphere in the team resembled a family. “This diversity and freedom returned my joy in movement. In Jablonec, we went kayaking at the reservoir, and in Jilemnice, we had breakfast in Vítek’s garden. We were like one big supportive family, and that lightness transferred into our performances.”

At the same time, it was a period of extreme balancing between sport and work. “I would describe my life from May 2025 as a time of extreme balancing and striving for maximum efficiency. I had to find a thin balance between training and work – when I managed one, there was no time left for the other. I had to start working full-time in the spring, not because I wanted to, but because I was removed from the national team and had no other choice if I wanted to enter the Olympic season and also earn a living.” This experience taught her to focus on what matters. “I will definitely end the season with a clear conscience and the feeling that I left no unfinished business in biathlon.”

Long-distance as a new path

After her career, she would like to find opportunities outside of sports, but she doesn’t plan to leave it entirely. “I am genuinely starting to map out my work options. I am attracted to management or human resources, where I could utilize my experiences, education, and determination from sports.” She is particularly interested in a trainee program for regional managers at Lidl. At the same time, she is drawn to creative work. “Since I have a close relationship with writing and creating promotional materials, I am interested in creative roles as a copywriter or marketer.”

However, sports will likely not disappear completely from her life. She is increasingly attracted to the world of long-distance skiing. “I definitely fell in love with long-distance last autumn when I was taken under the wing of the formerly known eD system Vltava Fund team.” Initially, she flew to Mallorca with the team only for alternative preparation, but found much more there. “I found a group of ambitious athletes and great people who welcomed me incredibly warmly.”

This year, she has already completed preparation as a full-fledged team member. “We skied Mallorca on roller skis as a team and I completed all training sessions focusing on freestyle technique.” In the future, she could also appear in the Ski Classics series. “In spring, I don’t want my physical condition to go to waste. I would like to develop it, perhaps in this royal discipline.”

And if she lines up for long-distance races, one thing is certain. “I definitely won’t just want to participate – if I line up for the long-distance season, I won’t hold back.”

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