CHOUPENITCH Alexander

Personal Information

Residence Brno, CZE

Occupation Athlete, Musician

Languages Czech, English, Italian, Russian

Higher education Sport Studies - Masaryk University: Brno, CZE

License number 02051994000

Club

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Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? He began fencing at age eight at the Sokol Brno I club in Czechia.

Why this sport? He played basketball when he was younger but sometimes he would not touch the ball during a match. His mother then took him to a fencing club. "Never before had I heard of fencing and had no idea. Mum just said one day we were going to practice, so I went. At first I didn't even enjoy fencing that much, because you don't even fence for the first year."

Club / Team Mousquetaires d'Issy-les-Moulineaux [FRA] / Sokol Brno I [CZE]:

Training Regime His training days are split into three sessions - conditioning, fencing, and recovery.

Handedness Right

General Interest

Nicknames Cupe, Sasha, Alex (redbull.com, 09 Jun 2015)

Hobbies Listening to music, playing the piano, ice hockey. (redbull.com, 24 Sep 2020)

Memorable sporting achievement Winning bronze in individual foil at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (idnes.cz, 14 Jul 2022)

Most influential person in career His family. (redbull.com, 09 Jun 2015)

Sporting philosophy / motto "Do what you enjoy and do it to the fullest." (redbull.com, 24 Sep 2020)

Awards and honours He was named Athlete of the Year for 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Sokol in Czechia. (idnes.cz, 22 Mar 2024; sokol.eu, 31 Mar 2023; Sokolsky Beh Republiky Facebook page, 27 Sep 2022)

He was named the 2012 Talent of the Year for the Southern Region of Czechia. (kr-jihomoravsky.cz, 24 Apr 2012)

Milestones He became the first fencer representing Czechia to win a medal at the Olympic Games by claiming bronze in individual foil at the 2020 Games in Tokyo. (SportsDeskOnline, 06 Sep 2021; eurofencing.info, 17 Aug 2021)

He was the first fencer representing Czechia to win a medal in individual foil at the European championships, claiming bronze at the 2018 edition of the tournament in Novi Sad, Serbia. (SportsDeskOnline, 11 Jul 2018; denik.cz, 21 Jun 2018)

Famous relatives His step-grandmother Tatyana Samusenko was a fencer. She represented the Soviet Union at four editions of the Olympic Games between 1960 and 1972, winning three gold medals in team foil. (SportsDeskOnline, 21 Jun 2017; denik.cz, 19 Jun 2012)

Ambitions To win gold at the Olympic Games. (redbull.com, 24 Sep 2020)

Other information MUSICIAN
Away from sport he makes rap music. He has released songs including 'Tak Daleko' [So Far] in February 2021. "It's hard to say [where his love of rap came from]. Rap and hip hop are now the most popular genres. Anyone who listens to music has had to encounter it. Before that, it was rock, that's natural. But I listen not only to rap, but also to other genres. Sometimes I play house, for example. Sometimes I want something where there are more words, sometimes more bass." (sport.rozhlas.cz, 29 Mar 2024; irozhlas.cz, 22 Aug 2023; idnes.cz, 14 Jul 2022, 12 Apr 2021; YouTube channel, 21 Feb 2021)

HERITAGE
His parents were opera singers in Belarus before moving to Czechia. They changed their surname from the Belarusian 'Supenic' to the French 'Choupenitch' as they travelled around Europe with the opera. They later settled in Brno, Czechia, where Alexander was born. (czechteam.info, 25 Nov 2016; rozhlas.cz, 04 Jul 2016; sport.lidovky.cz, 12 Apr 2014)

THEATRE
He has appeared as an extra in productions at the Janacek Theatre in Brno, Czechia, including a small part in the opera 'The Bartered Bride'. (isport.blesk.cz, 26 Jul 2021)