News

Whooping cough is on the rise in Czechia, with 449 new cases in the last week. There have been 1,666 confirmed cases in the country since the start of this year, more than in the last four years combined. Around a third of those affected are children and adolescents.

Symptoms of the infectious disease are repeated bouts of coughing that can end in gasping or vomiting and that won't respond to common medications. Whooping cough can be fatal for unvaccinated infants under one year of age. Infants may not have a significant cough, as they have not yet developed a cough reflex, but warning signs are apnoeic pauses (absence of breathing lasting more than twenty seconds) and gasping.

The traditional Prague “S” derby between Sparta and Slavia ended in a 0:0 draw at the former’s Letná stadium on Sunday evening. Sparta’s Ecuadorian defender Preciado was sent off in the final minutes of the game, which was the 310th  edition meeting between the city rivals.

The result leaves Sparta, who are defending champions, four points clear at the top of the table in the regular part of the league. Slavia are second, eight points ahead of third-placed Viktoria Plzeň.

Czechia’s Ester Ledecká placed third in the super giant slalom World Cup in Kvitfjell, Norway on Sunday for her first appearance on the podium since returning from a collarbone injury sustained in 2022.

The 2018 Super-G Olympic champion, who finished fourth at the same venue on Saturday, was last in the top three in a World Cup event nearly two years ago. Ledecká, who is 28,  is 11th overall in this year’s edition.

Some 47 percent of Czechs are satisfied with their country’s membership of the European Union, suggests a poll conducted by the Ipsos agency for the Czech News Agency.

The survey, conducted in connection with June’s European Parliament elections, indicates that for Czechs, the most common reasons for dissatisfaction with the functioning of the EU are restrictions on the sovereignty of member states, EU migration policy and excessive regulation.

Regarding the positives of membership, respondents most emphasised security and peace in the union, the protection of democratic values and the support and development of regions.