News

Police have reported the presence of a man carrying a firearm in Čelákovice, near Prague, who was allegedly heading toward a local vocational school. A special intervention unit has been deployed to the scene, police said in a post on X.

According to police, the armed man is mentally disturbed and is travelling in a blue Škoda Fabia with the registration plate 5AB 7197.

Authorities are urging anyone who spots the vehicle to immediately call the emergency police line 158, but not to approach or attempt to intervene in any way.

Markéta Vondroušová, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, has been banned from tennis for four years after failing to provide a sample during an out-of-competition doping control last year.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced the sanction on its website, noting that failure to provide a sample carries the same penalty as a positive doping test.

Responding to the ruling, the 26-year-old denied ever using performance-enhancing substances. The incident occurred during an out-of-competition test in December. Vondroušová argued that the inspector from Germany’s anti-doping agency did not follow standard procedures and was therefore denied entry to her apartment. The inspector stated in her report that all required procedures had been followed.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has warned that the government’s proposal to fund public-service media from the state budget lacks legal safeguards designed to protect Czech Television and Czech Radio from political influence over future funding decisions.

The criticism came in a joint statement issued by the EBU, 17 public-service broadcasters from Central and Eastern Europe, and eight journalism organizations. The signatories urged the government to abandon the planned changes.

According to the EBU, any reform of public-service media financing, regardless of the model chosen, must ensure adequate, stable and predictable funding and be accompanied by strong, binding guarantees of editorial independence.

Staff at national public broadcaster Czech Radio, which includes Radio Prague International, are holding a 24-hour strike from midnight on Sunday.

Employees are opposed to a government plan to end the current license fee funding system and place the station directly under the state budget. This will bring about a significant cut in Czech Radio’s budget, while critics say it may also lead to political pressure and interference.

The government’s bill also concerns Czech Television and its staff are taking similar action on Monday. On Sunday afternoon an estimated several thousand supporters of the station gathered in front of its main building to protest against the planned changes.