Tomas Janku on diving for bodies

European silver medallist Tomas Janku may be among the world’s best high jumpers but the Czech athlete is also a highly qualified diver with a very special volunteer role for the police and fire department. spikesmag.com plunged into the murky depths to find out more...

“I had done some diving when I was younger but when I heard the police were looking for someone to find bodies in the water I was very interested in that.

"I always wanted to be something like a firefighter when I was younger, so I saw diving as my chance to do it and because I am a volunteer it was a decision from the heart.

"My grandfathers were both soldiers and I think it is in my blood to be attracted to things which are dangerous.

"It is easy to dive in the sea when you can see 20-40m in front. I prefer the challenge of diving in dirty water - it is very dangerous when you can see nothing.

"The job involves a lot of training and responsibility and we are often asked to find dead bodies. The worst thing I have ever found is a lifeless child.

"It is another world down there and you are not responsible only for yourself, but also for the team. It is very similar in track and field in that I always like competitions like the European Cup and being part of a team. I like the team competitions more than the individual competitions.

"It can also be very dangerous. I once was underwater and an irresponsible person forgot to close the dyke drain. If the damn is open this is very dangerous for divers you face big pressure because lots of water is going out of the damn and if you are too close you can die and we were really close – about 5m – to death about seven years ago.

"You can feel that something is wrong and the water is not in the same place. The danger comes because you are pushed out of the damn. I was close to being in big trouble.

"What I would say, though, is diving helps with my athletics because it teaches me how to concentrate. Without this it is impossible to do the best I can in the high jump."