Sports News
After a dramatic final against Russia, the Czech women's basketball team have come second at the European Championships in Greece. Czech football league leaders Ostrava have continued their great start to the season with a 3:0 win over Zlin, while Teplice and Sparta have both won to take up second and third positions. Hannover's Czech midfielder Jan Simak is missing: since failing to turn up for training last week the troubled midfielder has simply disappeared. Czech number one Jiri Novak has been well beaten in the final of the Shanghai Open and ice hockey Extraliga champions Slavia have finally won their first game of the season.
Czechs second after dramatic final at Euro Women's Basketball Championships
"I think we can't be disappointed when we lose the final of the European Championships by just three points. It's not a disappointment but a great feeling, we were so close to victory."
The basketball team's success also means that they are the first Czech team to qualify for next year's Olympics in Athens.
Ostrava stay on top after win in front of 16,000 home fans
Football league leaders Banik Ostrava have continued their great start to the season with a 3:0 win over Zlin on Sunday. Two of Banik's goals came from the in-form Marek Heinz, who now has a remarkable eight goals in nine games. And in a league where pitiful attendances are the norm, a very impressive 16,000 fans turned out for Sunday's game in Ostrava.
Teplice are now second: they followed a UEFA Cup win over Kaiserslautern with a victory over second-from-bottomViktoria Zizkov in Prague. Petr Vorisek got the only goal of the game with a wonderfully taken free kick.
Sparta Prague, meanwhile, have moved into third after beating a hapless Blsany 4:0, in their first away win in almost six months. Lukas Zelenka marked his comeback from injury by getting the champion's fourth goal. Sparta will face tougher opposition on Wednesday, when they take on Lazio in Rome in the Champions League.
Czech "legionnaires" among the goals around Europe
As for the legionnaires, as the Czech players playing abroad are called, at the weekend Liverpool's Vladimir Smicer got his first league goal since the 2001/2002 season, Pavel Nedved scored one for Juventus and set up another, and Under 21 international David Kobylik scored for French club Strasbourg.
"Depressed" Simak still missing, may quit football to open pub
Hannover's Czech midfielder Jan Simak is still missing: since failing to turn up for training last week the troubled midfielder has simply disappeared. The club said last week that he was suffering from depression and there have been reports that the 24-year-old plans to quit football and open a pub in south Bohemia.
Novak beaten comprehensively in final of Shanghai Open
Czech tennis number one Jiri Novak suffered a whitewash in the final of the Shanghai Open on Sunday: the top seed was beaten 6-2, 6-1 in just 50 minutes by Australia's Mark Philippoussos.
Czech Davis Cup Team to enjoy home advantage in first round v. Spain
The Czech Davis Cup team have drawn Spain in the first round of next year's competition. That clash will take place in Ostrava at the beginning of February.
Extraliga champions Slavia finally win while Sparta suffer first defeats
Ice hockey Extraliga champions Slavia Prague have finally won their first game of the season; they beat Kladno 3:1 on Sunday. Sparta Prague, meanwhile, lost star Martin Havlat, who is returning to Ottawa, and then promptly lost two games in a row, their first defeats of the season coming at the hands of leaders Pardubice and Litvinov.
