“I think that we have done more work in the short time since my election than was done here in 10 years. Since the creation of the marketing department, we have had to do audits, settle things so that they are legally correct,” recalls the work of the executive committee of the union Hadamczik. “We raised the salaries of the coaches mainly in the youth area, we did a lot of good work. Those clubs saw that money was being given to the entire movement,” explains the former coach, one of the reasons why he decided to run again for the president of the Czech Ice Hockey Association. The election conference will take place on Saturday, June 15.
Hadamczik also commented on the much-discussed topic of direct promotion and relegation to the extra league. “I get a lot of negative mail that we keep Kladno in the extra league because of Jágr. It is not like that. You need to know the order. Extraliga broke away from the union and has its own rights. I would like it to drop out of the league straight away,” the head of Czech hockey admitted, adding that this is purely within the competence of the extra-league APK (Association of Professional Clubs). “If there aren’t enough votes in the extra league to vote it off, the union is powerless.”
I didn’t like the tournament in Brno, but I don’t interfere with Rulík
In a special episode of the Behind the Bar podcast, of course, the approaching world championship was also discussed. It starts in Prague and Ostrava already on Friday. “A lot of work has been done, but the preparation for the WC is very demanding. A lot of things are prepared for the fans, fan zones, various attractions,” praises the first man of Czech hockey.
However, the former coach is not so optimistic about the last tournament as part of the preparation of the national team. “Brno was not in the best form. I think that there was not an optimal performance,” recalls Hadamczik of the Betano Hockey Games, where the Czech team did not score a single point and finished last. “But every coach has his own methods and Radim Rulík decided to have as many players until the last moment,” shrugs the president of the ČSLH and adds that the coaching staff still has his full confidence. “I want to know information, if they ask me for an opinion, I’ll tell them, but otherwise I don’t interfere.”
The final preparation of the Czech national team has a downward trend, after clear wins over weaker opponents such as Germany, Austria or Slovakia, came the confrontation with the European elite. And the team led by Radim Rulík managed to score only two goals in three matches in Brno. “I didn’t like the tournament,” Hadamczik did not hide his disappointment.
There is no obligation to take players from the NHL
In a podcast on Sport.cz, the president of the Czech Ice Hockey Association also touched on the topic of nominations for the upcoming domestic championship. “I’m not saying it’s wrong for the coaching staff to take players out of the NHL because of performance. But I think we should have them spotted, and if the player is not up to it at the moment, then there is no obligation to take him. And I told Radi Rulík that it wasn’t entirely happy, we’ll need those guys maybe even next year,” Hadamczik pointed out, adding that when he called a player from an overseas competition as a coach, he was convinced of his qualities and that he is always ready for the championship took “However, I thanked all the players and told them that one exclusion from the team does not mean the end of a career.”
Record: Nomination of the hockey teamVideo: Sport.cz
The Czech Republic has a tough start to the domestic championship, on Friday at 20:20 they will face Finland, which they lost 1:4 in Brno last week. “The Finns won, we lost, but the game is over. And I wish the team to be patient. That team has to be extremely prepared, they have to hate the Finns at every turn. I don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t win,” believes the former coach, who also relies on massive audience support. “Hopefully he will be our sixth player on the ice.”
The independent Czech Republic is hosting the world hockey championship for the third time, but it came out empty-handed in the previous two. And Hadamczik does not dare to guess. “It’s a sport, there are very strong teams here, anything can happen. I wish good luck to the coaches, good health to the players. If things don’t go well, the spectator can provoke the players. And I would like to show the world that the Czech audience is fantastic.”
In the special edition of the Za mantinelem podcast, rumors about Hadamczik’s work in the Brno football team Zbrojovka were also discussed, it will be explained why the Czech Republic will not have a third set of jerseys at this year’s championship, or how the head of Czech hockey, who is also a former national team coach, experiences the matches.
Current hockey events under the microscope of Sport.cz editors.
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