Vasek Klouda

Vasek Klouda is considered one of the greatest if not the greatest freestyle footbag player of all time.

He entered into the sport in 2000 in his early teens and quickly rose through the ranks of the then up-and-coming European footbag scene. Together with Jan Weber (Honza), Ales Zelinka, and their mentor/promoter, Jan Struz (Dexter), they put freestyle on the map for Prague in the Czech Republic.

Vasek schooled daily, forming his style from professionals such as Ryan Mulroney and Peter Irish, among others. With his unnatural ankle crank, Klouda made a name for himself at the 2001 European Footbag Championships, attended by top players Eric Wulff and Ryan Mulroney from the United States. Much early video of him comes from this event, where he did not win, but got on the radar of the larger footbag community.

Video of Vasek spread, and in 2002, he attended his first World Footbag Championships. Vasek’s skill level was far beyond any other player at the time, including the reigning professionals. He and the Czech crew dominated freestyle the entire week of the event, with Vasek winning most of the freestyle events. In a narrow and controversial decision, he won freestyle footbag routines, winning the title from two-time champion Ryan Mulroney. This was considered the beginning of the next generation of freestylers that included figures like Honza Weber (four-time world champion), Ales Zelinka, and Jim Penske (world champion). Inspired by this new wave of players, others greats emerged including Milan Benda (two-time world champion), Jindra Smola (world champion) Felix Zenger, Jorden Moir, David Clavens (world champion), Evan Gatesman (world champion), Nick Landes, Tina Aberli (world champion), Anssi Sundberg, Aleksi Airinen, Juho Marjo, Olav Piwowar, Damian Gielnicki (world champion), and many, many more. This was essentially freestyle footbag’s Millennial generation.

Vasek Klouda was inducted into the Big Add Posse in 2002 along with Honza Weber, Jim Penske, Ales Zelinka, and Bryan Fournier. His BAP nicknames are Vasek ‘Crazy Glue’ Klouda, and ‘The Golden Child’.

Vasek dominated freestyle footbag for the next decade, winning most of the events he entered. He won the European Footbag Championships many times, and won the World Footbag Championships in routines multiple years, including 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2019. He also won numerous world and European titles in other events such as Circle, Shred 30, and doubles freestyle.

Klouda was highlighted in many videos over the years, held many records, and was sponsored by many companies. He performed footbag all over the world, and also became a well-known football freestyle player (freestyle soccer), as well as a fluent beatboxer.

Vasek’s entrance into the sport marked one of the highest points in footbag history, with record breaking attendance for events and general popularity. He is considered to have one of the best footbag styles in freestyle, combining smooth, technical, and creative play. Vasek and the European explosion in the early 2000s introduced a new way of playing freestyle footbag that highlighted efficiency, form, and effortlessness. This in turn jumped the technical level of freestyle far beyond what it was before. Many freestyle records from the Millennial generation remain unbroken.

Vasek was inducted into the Footbag Hall of Fame in 2016 and is one of most influential figures in footbag history.

Vasek Klouda video by MonsterHack, 2004

Vasek Klouda