Prague, Jan 27 (CTK) – The Prague police launched the prosecution of former Czech national ice hockey coach Vladimir Ruzicka over suspected embezzlement yesterday, according to CTK’s information.
The police spokesman Tomas Hulan did not give any information on the case.
Ruzicka resigned from the post of the national team’s coach last June over suspected corruption and Vladimir Vujtek replaced him in the post.
According to the suspicion, Ruzicka received money from the parents of several players to let their sons play for the Slavia Praha club, of which Ruzicka was manager and coach in 2000-2014.
Slavia was relegated from the top Czech hockey league last season. Ruzicka now coaches Pirati Chomutov, a newcomer to the top league.
Last April, a father released a video recording indicating that Ruzicka accepted a bribe of half a million crowns from him for enabling his son to play for Slavia.
Ruzicka said the sum was a donation, but it was not included in the club’s accounting. He said he returned the sum to the father.
According to daily Mlada fronta Dnes (MfD), Ruzicka said the father blackmailed him. The father claimed that Ruzicka had not given the son enough opportunities in the hockey team, MfD wrote.
Ruzicka rejected all the accusations. He sued the father, but the police shelved his criminal complaint.
Ruzicka coached the Czech national ice hockey team in 2004-2005, 2008-2010 and 2014-2015. When he was an active player, he played with the Czech team at three Olympic hockey tournaments and at five World Championships. The highlight of his career as a forward was his captaincy of the team that brought home the gold from Nagano Olympics in 1998.
($1=24.928 crowns)
