Hockey fans will be able to go to the stone Hall of Fame again after almost a year’s break. No longer a few meters from the O2 arena, where the world championship will be held, but in the center of Prague in Nekázanka. The head of the association, Alois Hadamczik, claims that the new project is much more economical and that the visitors will only be overwhelmed.
Among the most famous moments of Czech hockey is the victory at the Olympics in Nagano.
| Photo: Profimedia.cz
The street with the picturesque name Nekázanka entered history as an “illegal” street, not approved by the chief planner of the New Town, Karl IV. (at least that’s what the rumor says). In Švejko, we find a mention of a local pub called “V čubčí háj”, and almost every Prague resident remembers the covered bridges between the two bank palaces high above the road.
Newly, the tucked-away alley not far from Wenceslas Square is also home to the hockey Hall of Fame (a ceremonial opening is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, May 7). The man behind the move of this institution, which has been operating since 2008, from the Harfa Shopping Gallery in Libni to the center of the metropolis, is the head of the hockey association, Alois Hadamczik. And the controversial move bears all the hallmarks of his somewhat chaotic management skills.
The “overpriced” pride of Czech hockey is coming to an end. For us, it is salvation, claims Hadamczik
The new premises in Nekázanka are according to Hadamczikova expression “representative” and “dignified”. “The Hall of Fame will be moved to places that will be easily accessible to both Czech and foreign hockey enthusiasts,” says Hadamczik, who is certainly relieved that the protracted construction work was completed before the start of the domestic World Cup.
An effort to distinguish itself from the previous management
However, question marks cannot be avoided. The location of the Hall of Fame in the shopping center may not have been so dignified, but it was mainly the fact that the prestigious hockey museum was located literally a few meters from the O2 arena, the venue of the championship. It would be logical to assume that a lot of fans will associate visiting matches with an exhibition of Czech hockey achievements. Definitely more logical than them going to the center somewhere.
The closing of the exhibition in Libni last year already caused controversy. Hadamczik talked about the unbearable costs and the whole event was apparently related to the fact that he was trying to distinguish himself as visibly as possible from the previous union leadership of Tomáš Král.
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“I’ve only seen a better Hall of Fame in Toronto,” TV commentator Robert Záruba said at the time, saying that he understands the high costs as a reason, but less so the fact that the decision was made just before the home World Cup. Bizarre photos of Dominik Hašek, who is carrying his personal artifacts from the liquidated museum in a shopping cart, have circulated around the world. “It was constructed differently to give it to us,” the union boss now claims.
There was also confusion regarding the new address. Last summer, Hadamczik first announced that the new Hall would be built in Palladium on Náměstí republiky (that is, another shopper). According to him, the architects were already working on it. However, the project was quietly abandoned and in the end, the Nekázanka variant appeared out of nowhere. The hall will be smaller, but supposedly better. “I believe we will receive recognition on May 7,” Hadamczik said.
Tags: Hall Fame finally opens hockey Hadamczik awaits praise
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