You can find out under what circumstances this photograph was taken direct from the author: “The Superbikes World Championship had its premiere at Autodrom Most and I was also taking photographs of competitive motorcycling for the first time. The drama shown in the image was during Sunday’s race on 8 August 2021 when competitors were fighting for their position shortly after the start. Originally, I wanted to take a shot of the whole group of riders with the spectators in the background, but when I noticed the problem behind the leading riders, I quickly refocused on those unfortunate to be involved in the collision. A rider speeding off also got into the foreground of the photograph.”
Photo: Ondřej Hájek / ČTK
Born in 1975 in Ústí nad Labem into a family of photographers, his grandfather Oldřich Holan having been a photographer for ČTK and his mother Ludmila Hájková a photographer for Krajský projektový ústav. Shortly after the revolution in 1989 and during his studies at secondary economics school, he helped to found the family company, FOTO STUDIO H, with his mother and his brother, Vojtěch. After completing secondary school, he was contacted by the Mf DNES newsroom, where he worked for around 3 years, after which he returned to the family company to focus on publishing photographic books, calendars and advertising photography in particular – still mainly using large-format Sinar, Linhof and Mamiya 6x6 – 13x18 cm cameras. With the onset of digital technology, he focused again to a greater extent on press photography, and beginning in 2013 gradually took over the photography baton for ČTK in North Bohemia from Libor Zavoral, who was at one time brought into ČTK by Ondřej’s grandfather, Oldřich Holan.