Nepela | Outdoor Cinema

Director Gregor Valentovič will attend the screening

Figure skater Ondrej Nepela returns from the Olympic Games with a gold medal around his neck. Awaiting him are the admiration of his fans and the reality of life in Czechoslovakia. The famous, sensitive, and insecure athlete searches for a place where he can finally be himself.

The film chronicles a period in the life of figure skater Ondrej Nepela, who returns in 1972 with a gold medal from the Winter Olympics in Sapporo, where he achieved his greatest athletic success. At home, not only fame awaits him, but also the reality of the communist regime. Everyone treats him like a celebrity, but the sensitive Ondrej longs above all to escape this “golden cage,” which he finds unbearable. He wants to live freely and in harmony with who he feels he truly is. However, the promised opportunity to join a professional ice revue is denied at the last minute, and he is ordered to compete in another world championship. Disappointed, Nepela must find new motivation and come to terms with the tragic death of his best friend, figure skater Hanka Mašková. Ondrej Nepela is one of Czechoslovakia’s greatest sports legends. Throughout his athletic career, he won every conceivable award, and his life story remains a tremendous inspiration to this day. In the film, viewers will see the main character portrayed by Josef Trojan, his coach Hilda Múdra played by Zuzana Mauréry, and the role of his fateful friend Hana Mašková portrayed by Antonia Formanová.