Daily news summary
Hundreds commemorate 75th anniversary of Ležáky massacre
Hundreds of people attended a memorial ceremony on Sunday on the site of Ležáky, one of the two Czech villages that was razed to the ground by the Nazis 75 years ago. In retaliation for the assassination of the Nazi governor of Bohemia and Moravia, Reinhard Heydrich, all of the adults were executed and 11 children sent to the extermination camp. The village was burnt down on June 24th 1942. Among those who attended the ceremony was Jarmila Štulíková-Doležalová, one of the two Ležáky survivors.
Book by Tomáš Halík wins Foreward Indies Award
I Want You to Be, a book by Catholic priest and a renowned Czech theologian Tomáš Halík, has won a golden medal of the Foreward INDIES Book of the Year Awards in the philosophy category. The awards aim to recognise independent notable works and winning entries are chosen by readers, librarians and book sellers. I Want You to Be was published in English by the University of Notre Dame Press and is described as a meditation on love towards god, one’s self, friends and enemies.
Saturday saw highest number of traffic fatalities in single day
Nine people died in traffic accidents in the Czech Republic on Saturday - the highest number of fatalities in a single day on Czech roads this year, according to the preliminary statistics released by the traffic police on Sunday. Forty-nine people died on Czech roads in the course of June, which is the highest toll in any single month this year.
Above-average temperatures expected for the rest of June
Temperatures in the Czech Republic should remain considerably higher than average for the time of year in the next week. According to a long-term forecast from the Czech Hydro-Meteorological Institute we can expect day-time highs of up to 35 degrees Celsius. Rainfall levels are also expected to be above average in the following weeks. The start of the summer holidays should be considerably cooler, with temperatures ranging between 23 and 24 degrees Celsius.
Kvitová wins Aegon Classic in Birmingham
Czech tennis player Petra Kvitová won the Aegon Classic tournament in Birmingham, just six months after sustaining a career-threatening injury. The two-time Wimbledon champion defeated Australia's Ashleigh Barty 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in only her second tournament since the start of her comeback. Kvitová was sidelined for five months after she was hurt during an attack at her apartment, sustaining injuries to her left, playing hand. She returned at last month's French Open, where she lost in the second round.
Football: Czech lose with Denmark in Under-21 Football Championships
Czech national Under-21 football team finished at the bottom of Group C after succumbing to a 4:2 defeat at the hands of Denmark in the final group game. The Czechs twice fell behind in the game, but both times equalised as Denmark opened the scoring in the 23rd minute. The Danes took the lead once again in the 73rd minute and sealed their victory late in the second half. The team of Vítězslav Lavička returns home with three points from three games.
Weather
Monday is expected to be mostly sunny with daytime highs ranging between 27 and 31 degrees Celsius.
