Lucky streak or signs of good times ahead? Slovak athletes run up big successes

Slovak athletes have been running up some big successes recently. Their Davis Cup tennis team qualified for the semi-final and will play against Argentina in September, the football team Artmedia Petrzalka made history by being the first Slovak club ever to qualify for the third round of the Champions League. So, despite most sports clubs suffering from a lack of finances a number of them are finding ways to encourage high level performance and win against the toughest competition.

Dominik Hrbaty, photo: CTK

At the end of July, a cheering crowd at the Tehelne Pole stadium in Bratislava witnessed one of the greatest-ever football achievements in the country's history. FC Artmedia Bratislava thrashed the famous Glasgow Celtic team 5-0 in the first leg of the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The match was held before 18,000 spectators, many of whom had little faith in Artmedia given the poor state of Slovak football with underfunded teams and national championships that leave much to be desired. But sponsorship made Artmedia dream and succeed in defeating Celtic, thereby qualifying for the third round. This success in football came only weeks after Slovakia's Davis Cup team managed to qualify for the semi-final of the prestigious competition. Its key player Dominik Hrbaty was on cloud nine:

"Following the national ice hockey team who became world champions a few years ago, for Slovakia to play a Davis Cup semi-final is the second greatest success in our country's history. I am glad that I am a member of this Davis Cup team. In terms of popularity on the world stage, hockey is not so well spread while tennis is played in 134 countries therefore it has a much wider audience. Many people now know that a country named Slovakia exists."

Indeed, until two or three years ago it was only ice-hockey players, who were able to bring Slovaks some glory. Other sports were deprived of medals and European or world titles simply because it was difficult for clubs to find money to recruit and support athletes. Hockey players from the national team are pretty rich thanks to the more than generous salaries they have earned in the NHL. However, last year's Olympic Games brought more than expected medals. Slovaks won silver in judo and bronze in shooting, for example. These are sports, which are hardly ever featured on the front pages of newspapers. Frantisek Chmelar, the President of the Slovak Olympic Committee, says his team could not have done anything without sponsors and adds that any attempt to help promote sports in Slovakia is welcome:

"One of those things that can help us is the new sports law, which has been drafted by the Ministry of Education and will be discussed in specialized committees in two weeks time. It should make clear which tools clubs can use to raise funds. Some chapters still require discussion and adjustments because they are not flexible and it looks like the state still controls and dictates the terms."

The state invests little in sport. The national teams and individual athletes have to rely heavily on the good will of the marketing directors of private companies. For them an athlete competing at quite a high level, especially in front of thousands of viewers, brings brand visibility. The problem is that rich sponsors are not interested in children, juniors or athletes who are not yet well known. Well, nobody is born a champion and the financial problems of sports clubs make many promising athletes fail to give their best or even give up their sport.

Around the world, people have already started worrying that sponsors have a too much influence in the process of organizing sports competitions. In Slovakia, athletes and their coaches and managers hope that more sponsors will get involved in organizing competitions.