Cesca Sinsokol Hall

In the early 1940s, before the young Joe Bashner was old enough to cross the street, he stared at the Cesca Sinsokol Hall in his father's photography studio at 4203 Clark Avenue. This three-and-a-half-story building is opposite to 43 14 Clark Street, which is very large both nearby and in his imagination. Joe also dreams that one day, like his brothers Alfred, Rudy and Gilbert, he will go to the hall and become a member of Sokol and a gymnast. Joe Bachna grew up in the west of Cleveland, where Czechs, Slovaks and German-Americans lived. The Sinsokol Hall in Cesca used to be the base camp of many Sokol organizations in the West District for nearly 40 years. Falcon is a sports and cultural project established by 1862 in Prague to promote national unity and pride. It is a part of the culture brought to America by Czech immigrants in the second half of the19th century. The first Sokol in America was founded in 1865 St. Louis. By the 1970s of 19, Sokol began to be established among the growing Czech population in Cleveland, and by the 1990s of 19,

The Czech Sokol team in the west of Cleveland-Novavlas and Ceska Zbavny (Czech entertainment company)-began to buy real estate and build a gym in Clark Fulton. In 1903, they joined forces with many hostels, clubs and other ethnic organizations for young men and women to win a large auditorium for all their activities. They set up a sponsor ("Management Committee") and purchased the Hungarian Pavilion at 1907. This hall was built by Theodore Kundtz, a wealthy Hungarian-American tycoon, in 1890. It was renamed Cesca Sinsokol Hall a few years after it was purchased. Thousands of West Side boys and girls receive gymnastics training in Cesca Sinsokol Hall. They also absorbed Sokol's creed, that is, to cultivate a strong mind and a sound morality to match their strong bodies. They practice, exhibit, participate in competitions, and participate in slets on special occasions (literally meaning "* * *", but it is actually a festival). Hundreds of Sokol members performed complex gymnastics movements. Since the 1920s, the Bachna family has been involved in these and other Hall activities. Old Joseph Bachna and his wife Angela were immigrants from Czechoslovakia, and they were members of many clubs and other organizations in the hall. Their children became members of Sokol, the Slovak Gymnastics Union, at an early age.

And all Bashna boys have established lifelong relationships with Sokol organization and Cesca Sinsokol Hall, one of which will have a great impact on the development of university gymnastics in northeast Ohio. Rudy Bachna founded gymnastics at Kent State University on 1959. At the age of 9, he retired from competitive career due to a serious left hand injury. This is the first such university program in northeast Ohio, and it quickly became a success, becoming a model of the national university gymnastics program. Rudy trained many pan-American and Olympic gymnasts, including Betty Jean Maycock, who won a gold medal at the Pan-American Games in 1960 and participated in the Rome Olympic Games in 1960. 1980 Rudy Bash was elected to the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in recognition of his contribution to college gymnastics. 1993, two years after his retirement, he and his wife Janet, both gymnastics coaches, were elected to the Hall of Fame of Kent State University.

Today, Sokol gymnasts are still training in Cesca Sinsokol Hall. They are still competitive, much like Bachna boys more than half a century ago. Although the number is small, these gymnasts trained by Sokol have been contributing to northeast Ohio for many years, sometimes outside gymnastics. 1969, 17-year-old Peter Sikolasokol is a member of the Sinsokol Hall in Cesca. He experienced a trampoline accident at St. ignatius High School, which paralyzed him for life, and his days as a gymnast were over. But according to Sokol's tradition of cultivating a sound mind and a healthy body, Peter continued to go to college and then went to law school. 1989, he became a lawyer and later became a juvenile court judge in Guyahoga county, where he served for 23 years until his death in 20 12. Like Rudy Bashner, Judge Sicora found a way. Although he is physically limited, he can also contribute to his community, just as he teaches at the Gymnastics Training Center in Cesca's Sinsokol Hall.