Petr Pavel

About

Czech politician and former army general who served as Chairman of the NATO Military Committee from 2015 to 2018, and as the Chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces from 2012 to 2015. He retired from the army in 2018 to be a lecturer and consultant. He is a candidate in the 2023 presidential election, and won the first round with 35.4% of the vote. 

Before Fame

He graduated from the military gymnasium in Opava, then the Military School of Ground Forces in Vyškov in 1983. He served in the army as a paratrooper and platoon leader. He was a member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1985 til its collapse in 1989. He continued his military education at a number of different universities. He graduated from King's College London with a Master's degree in International Relations. 

Trivia

He was recognized and awarded by both France and Czechoslovakia for his efforts in the rescue and evacuation of a French military base in 1993. During the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, he served as a liaison officer at the US headquarters in Qatar. He has 370,000 followers on his Instagram. Danuše Nerudová is often pictured with him, another 2023 presidential candidate who took third in the first round and went on to back Pavel. 

Family Life

He has two sons with his first wife, Hana. The two later divorced and he has since married his second wife, Eva. He has a black and orange cat. He has lived in Černouček since 2012. 

Associated With

Some political commentators noted that his 2020 anti-crisis campaign held similarities to Hillary Clinton's slogan during the 2016 presidential election.