František Kříž

František Kříž was an all-round athlete. In addition to fencing, he was active in rowing, shooting, athletics, cycling and the Sokol movement. As a fencer and member of ČŠK Riegel, he was champion of the Czechoslovakia in epee (1924, 1927) and sabre (1926). In the 1912 he competed in épée and foil events representing Bohemia. After a break of 16 years, he returned to the Olympics in 1928 at the age of 44, placing fifth in the épée team event. His last major competition was the 1931 European Championship.

In rowing, Kříž was champion of the lands of the Bohemian Crown (Bohemia plus Moravia and Austrian Silesia) in the single sculls in 1912. In the same year, he won an international competition in pistol shooting. Kříž worked as clerk of the company “Orion” in Praha (Prague). Later, he taught fencing at the Officer Academy in Hranice and became the first coach of the fencing club in Hradec Králové.