In Sports News: Sparta are knocked out in the quarterfinals of the playoffs of ice hockey's Extraliga for the first time in a decade; Sparta football club are laughing, with a corruption investigation dropped and a huge lead in the league; skier Roman Dostal surprises many by winning gold at the biathlon World Championships; and cross country star Katerina Neumannova says she is confident she can hang on to second place in the World Cup standings.
Shock: Sparta fall at first hurdle in ice hockey playoffs
Sparta - Vitkovice, photo: CTK
The playoffs in the Czech ice hockey Extraliga have seen their first major shock, with Sparta Prague being knocked out in the quarter-finals for the first time in ten years. After finishing second in the regular season, the star-studded team found themselves in real danger after falling behind to Vitkovice 3:1 on games in the best of seven series. But any hopes of taking advantage of home ice on Saturday came to nothing, with the club's season coming to an end in a 4:6 defeat.
Sparta - Vitkovice, photo: CTK
One of the saddest faces on the night belonged to experienced Sparta goaltender Petr Briza; Briza, who is 40, said it was the worst night of his career. Meanwhile, coach Slavomir Lener was also hugely deflated, saying nine months of hard work had gone out the window in the space of one week. Questions are now being asked about the coach's future.
Elsewhere in the playoffs, Slavia Prague lead Liberec 3:2 on games, Hame Zlin are also 3:2 up against Litvinov and it's also Pardubice 3 Kladno 2.
Police drop investigation into Sparta FC, team racing away with league title
While Sparta Prague hockey club are in the doldrums, things could hardly be better for Sparta football club. Police say a recording said to be of sporting director Miroslav Pelta on the phone to a referee may not in fact feature Pelta, and have dropped an investigation into corruption at the club.
Sparta - Ceske Budejovice, photo: CTK
After beating bottom-of-the-table Ceske Budejovice 2:1 on Saturday, Sparta are now a whopping 17 points ahead of the pack in the league, though those trailing them do have a game or two in hand. Defensive midfielder Martin "brother of Dominik" Hasek has just rejoined the club after a four-year gap, while Czech international forward Marek Heinz looks set to join on loan from Germany's Borussia Monchengladbach, where he has been kicked out of the senior squad.
Gold for Dostal at biathlon World Championships another success for Czech skiers
Roman Dostal, photo: CTK
The Czech Republic's brilliant season in skiing continued last week, with gold for Roman Dostal in the 20km at the biathlon World Championships in Germany's Hochfilzen. Dostal's success was all the more welcome for being a total surprise - he had previously only reached the top ten on four occasions, with fifth place his career best. World Cup gold was, he said, the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.
Neumannova confident of silver in World Cup after "best 30km of life"
Katerina Neumannova, photo: CTK
Cross country skier Katerina Neumannova, meanwhile, came second in the 30km classic in Oslo in Saturday, describing it as the best 30km race of her life. Neumannova, who is 32, is currently in second place in the World Cup standings; she says she is confident she can take a silver medal for the whole season to add to her recent gold at the World Championships.
