Jiří Stanislav Guth-Jarkovský

Jiří Stanislav Guth-Jarkovský (24 January 1861 – 8 January 1943) was a Czech sports administrator, writer and pedagogue. He is known as the co-author of the Olympic Charter and the first president of the Czech Olympic Committee. During the presidency of Tomáš Masaryk, he was Master of Ceremonies of the President of the Czechoslovak Republic. He is one of the most important figures in Czech sports, culture and administration.

Life Jiří Stanislav Guth-Jarkovský (baptised Jiří Karel Guth) was born on 24 January 1861 in Heřmanův Městec. He was sickly as a child. He could not swim for a long time and never became an active athlete.

From 1870 to 1878, he attended the gymnasium in Rychnov nad Kněžnou. He thed studied philosophy, mathematics and physics at Charles University in Prague, and graduated in 1883. Between 1883 and 1887, he was employed as a tutor to the sons of the Schaumburg-Lippe noble family, which owned the Náchod estate. He lived with the family in Náchod, Ratibořice and Lancy (Switzerland) and travelled the world with them. From 1888 to 1919, he worked as a teacher at gymnasiums in Prague and Klatovy and taught Czech, French and physical education. In 1897, he married Anna Černá, with whom he had a son, Gaston.

Guth-Jarkovský he served as Secretary General of the International Olympic Committee from 1919 to 1923 and is a co-author of the Olympic Charter. He contributed to the development of Czech tourism as an editor of the magazine Turista.

A gymnasium in Prague 1 bears his name.