Continuing the Hlozek Family Legacy

[Bojovnik 487]

 

PRAGUE, July 27, 2022 (CZHockey) Jan Hlozek was destined to be a hockey star. It ran in his blood.

 

Born in 1993 in the eastern Czech village of Topolna, the Hlozek name conjures up several emotions: success, dedication, and drive

.

Jan’s father, Jiri, was a successful player during his youth in socialist Czechoslovakia. He won several titles with the army team of Bratislava, located in present-day Slovakia.

 

However, Jiri would go on to have an even more prominent coaching career. He was the first head coach of the independent Czech Republic team that managed several major tournament victories in the 1990s.

 

Even before that, Jan Hlozek’s grandfather (also named Jan), was a national team player in the 1950s and 1960s.

 

This raises the important question. Is it a question of genetics, or is it a question of upbringing?

 

Childhood

 

As mentioned above, Jan Hlozek was born in the village of Topolna, where the Hlozek dynasty based themselves. During his childhood, his father was often away, whether coaching the national team, or the Czech top tier side Kobra Brno.

 

The family made the decision not to move with Jiri, meaning that Jan spent his childhood in the idyllic Czech countryside.

 

The Hlozek family had a large allotment of land, on which Jan spent the bulk of his childhood playing football and helping with the harvest. Note, when we talk about harvest, we’re not talking about maize or corn. We’re talking about growing vegetables and most importantly fruit (plums, apricots etc.), which would then be turned into the high-strength alcohol known as slivovice or hruskovice.

 

Hlozek went to school in the neighbouring village of Dolni Lhotka. Topolna was considered too small to have a school of its own and he would walk the 2kms, rain or shine, with several of the other children from Topolna. This included Lubomir Rusnak, who would also go onto to have a fantastic hockey career in the Czech Republic.

 

When summer came, and Jiri returned from his coaching spells, the Hlozek family actively played tennis, and went on trips to the Tatra mountains in Slovakia. Jiri would also put his son, Jan, as well as several other young hockey players through a rigorous training program to prepare them for their upcoming junior seasons.

 

It would be remiss not to mention the efforts of Jan Hlozek’s mother, Katerina, through his childhood. She was a stern parent who demanded a lot of Jan, and his two sisters Milana and Alzbeta, throughout their childhood. Jan was expected to help on the land and also with the domestic duties.

 

Most notably, Jan was responsible for tending to the carp that the family brought each year ahead of Christmas for the traditional Czech meal.

 

Adolescence

 

For much of his childhood, Jan’s primary focus was on his hockey career. When he wasn’t at the rink, he was putting himself through the paces of his father’s strict training regimen.

 

This included long runs, hill sprints, monotonous bodyweight exercises, as well as training in a weighted vest. Hlozek would be sent to run 5 miles on the village streets with 20kg strapped to him, whether in the height of the Czech summer (when temperatures can reach +35 Celsius), or the icy cold winter.

 

As with many young players, Jan eventually outgrew Topolna. He would have to move to pursue his hockey dream.

 

At age 14, he was sent to play for Hokejovy Klub Vsetin, located around 80km from Topolna. At this time, the family did not have a car of their own and eventually found a solution that saw Hlozek stay with a relative of the head coach.

 

One year later, Hlozek was promoted to the Zlin team, and he would go on to spend two seasons in the largest city in the eastern Czech region of Moravia.

 

It was at this stage that something about Hlozek changed. It’s difficult to say that he hung around with the wrong crowd, but his priorities were different. Hlozek became renowned for staying out late, missing meetings, and turning up to training hungover.

 

Hlozek was said to clash with Zlin head coach Pavel Sekaras, to the extent to which father Jiri was brought in as an assistant coach in his second season there to monitor Jan’s behavior.

 

Things went from bad to worse when Hlozek was eventually signed by Dynamo Prague in the top tier of Czech hockey. With all the distractions that Prague has, Hlozek’s relationship with alcohol got worse, and his notoriety grew. He became a prominent figure in the Czech tabloid press, which watched his every move with an eager eye.

 

The constant attention of the Czech media eventually saw Dynamo cancel their contract with Hlozek despite him being the team’s top scorer, and what eventually led to Hlozek signing with the Saskatoon Wild in the VHLM, and his story in the top tier of global hockey began.

 

With eight seasons in the books, Hlozek is set to bow out from professional hockey. He has yet to make any indication as to where his future lies, but what we know for sure is that Jan Hlozek has certainly continued his family’s tradition of producing elite hockey players.

 

But it remains to be seen if Jan will follow in his father’s footsteps and take up coaching. The now-Moscow Menace defenceman has dabbled in a number of business opportunities during his time in the VHL, whether that be the launch of a clothing brand in Riga, or a supplements company during his time in Los Angeles.

 

Jan’s outspoken personality could see him take up a position in the sports media field, and there are rumours that the Czech national broadcaster – Ceska televize – has already made a lucrative offer to Jan after he announced his intention to retire at the end of S84.

 

It will be difficult to doubt Jan Hlozek. Despite the best efforts at, arguably, self-sabotaging his professional career (both on and off the ice), he has always found a way to pull through and achieve what he sets out to do.

 

1,007 words. Claiming weeks 07.08 and 14.08

[Bojovnik 487]

Week 2.