29.05.2017 18:18:31 | In 1995, the Živnostenská Bank was present at the Prostějov tournament for the first time and its boss, Jiří Kunert became one of the key figures of the Prostějov Challenger. Czech economist and banker, general manager of UniCredit Bank CR, Ing. Jiří Kunert substantially influenced the history of the Prostějov tournament. He acted as the CEO in the Živnostenská Bank from 1988 to 1992 and after its privatisation he was appointed chairman of the board of directors and a CEO.
In 2001 he was appointed chairman of the board of directors and CEO of the Slovak UniBank, member of the UniCredit financial group, whose parent company is the UniCredito Italiano bank. In May 2003, when UniCredit group became the majority owner of the Živnostenská Bank, Jiří Kunert returned to the position of its CEO.
"In my opinion, Jiří Kunert is a very fine person who persuaded me by his professional career and his attitude towards people that he has a great personality and honors the best human values. And the fact, that he has become my friend and also a great supporter of our tournament, is one of the best acknowledgements which I have ever achieved during my managerial career," said Miroslav Černošek about Jiří Kunert twenty-two years ago. "Jiří and I often discussed the future of our tournament and his prudence and views have always pointed our efforts in the correct direction."
And the first meeting of Jiří Kunert and Miroslav Černošek? "It was in Prague, he told me about his plans regarding tennis in Prostějov, and what they would like to achieve. I just began to play tennis at that time and I enjoyed it a lot, therefore I agreed to give it a try. Besides that, Živnobanka was very strong in Prague but we needed to gain a stronger position in Moravia and we achieved that thanks to the Prostějov tournament."
Was he persuaded by Černošek? "Yes, also, but the Prostějov team persuaded us by what they had already achieved in their club and in their other activities. It is true that we were careful at the beginning but gradually we learnt that we found a very good partner who strive to continuously improve and seek new forms of addressing other companies and involving important business, cultural and political personalities. The tournament has always offered professional facilities and flawless organization, therefore we decided to cooperate more closely with them," experienced banker Jiří Kunert added.
