Czech Ball Hockey Chairman Ondřej Průša on the World Junior Championship and preparations in Ostrava: The best thing that will ever happen in ball hockey awaits us

“Not only among us, but also by the entire global ball hockey community, Ostrava is perceived as the best that will ever take place in ball hockey," says Czech Ball Hockey Association president Ondřej Průša. What does it look like with the financing of major tournaments and what has the Junior World Cup already shown?

The World Junior Championship in Hradec Králové is your first championship as the chairman of the Czech Ball Hockey Association. Has it been a different experience for you compared to other championships?
Of course. You suddenly feel more responsible for what happens at the championship. Both from the sporting point of view, and from the point of view of contact with people who are extremely important to us by supporting our sport. So it's definitely different. I've already completed several championships in a role where I had a specific task that I was dealing with. Now I have to deal with more or less every possibility. On the other hand, we have a great organizational team that works with absolute precision. There is no need to check whether everything is going well, because people are great at it.

In recent years, the Czech Republic has largely set the bar for organizing similar events. Do you feel the responsibility of the Czech Association in relation to other national associations?
I think that the Czech Ball Hockey Association is the one that sets the standard of how the championships are organized. The bar is really very high. Of course that’s good, because this whole sport has to be presented in the best possible way. It needs to have publicity, which is extremely important. I told my colleagues from the ISBHF that it’s important that all national associations know how to communicate the championships well in their countries, simply so that ball hockey can be seen. Every championship should be intertwined with the entire ball hockey community. If I go back to what I said, every association is responsible for promoting hockey. Every championship that takes place has the opportunity to promote hockey. This is the only way we can make ball hockey known to the wider public.

What does this World Junior Championship show you in terms of comparing the quality of Czech teams with international competition?
From the point of view of the Czech teams, I see the comparison as excellent. Our teams are usually very well prepared. We play the highest role in the ISBHF, also in terms of the standard of play. I think that the U23 team is the main contender for the top spot. I wouldn't worry too much about the U16s, because I don't consider it to be necessarily important. For them, the games against Slovakia, Canada and the USA are important, but they’re mainly about meeting, getting to know each other and at the same time finding out what international ball hockey is all about. If they also manage to win a medal, and I believe they have it in them, even better. However, in this category, it's not really important to me.

The World Championship can also become a place where the ball hockey community from all over the country meets. Is the championship also successful in this area? Will fans from all over the Czech Republic attend it?
So far, I have had the opportunity to meet mainly people from the region here, but that was due to the working week. However, the teams are made up of boys from all over the country, so parents and their teammates show up here. But I also noticed a lot of fans, people and ball hockey players who are from other regions. So, actually, yes. When the championship is in the Czech Republic, it brings the whole community together. I would very much like this championship to be successful for the whole community. I think that for the work we do in hockey every day, we deserve it.

Every similar action brings with it a potential risk of financial loss. Do you have preliminary estimates of how the championship will turn out financially? Won't it burden the association coffers in some fundamental way?
That's a difficult question. The financing of Czech sports at the amateur level is basically based on either state money or money from municipalities. We managed to get money from the city and the region when financing this championship, but unfortunately, we didn't get money from the NSA (National Sports Agency). Even though the NSA declared that there will be a second round for important sports events, we still don't know the date and we don't know if we will be able to apply. Moreover, we will only deal with the expenses after the championship is over, which is never completely ideal. However, we have a preliminary estimate. If the subsidies from the NSA fail to be resolved, the championship will likely be in the red.

Have you resolved that concerning the upcoming Men’s and Women’s World Championships in Ostrava?
We would like the financing of this championship not to be so dependent on state money. State money can only be requested in a given year, so we cannot rely on it actually coming. For us, it is crucial to solve the championship in Ostrava in such a way that its financing is largely ensured differently. That is why Michal Krček, who is very experienced in this area, came to the association. But overall, it is terribly complicated.

What other goals do you have for the World Championship in Ostrava? Do you think you will break the attendance record from Pardubice in 2017?
We have several goals. Intensive preparations are already underway. Not only among us, but also by the entire global ball hockey community, Ostrava is perceived as the best that will ever take place in ball hockey. It’s a huge commitment, from which the goals also follow. The championship should really be its own. We hope this World Championship brings our community together as much as possible and shows ourselves that we are one big community that does things together. We want it to show the sport to the outside world, and to show it to young children and their parents that it really makes sense to sign up for ball hockey. We would also like to show the world that we can be a big sport.

Can the World Junior Championship in Hradec Králové help to awaken more interest in ball hockey?
I've already said that if these events are seen, they raise awareness of this sport. That's what's important. Of course, the message to the community is also important, so that they know that every player, coach or official has the opportunity to have a goal that they can achieve if they focus on it properly.

What would you like to say to those who are still thinking about going to Hradec Králové for the finals?
I would only say that they should not hesitate and go! Everyone who comes to support the national teams is important not only for them, but also for the whole community. Of course, you also get an experience from the championship. Ball hockey is a sport that should be played for fun. I don't mean it only in the sense that we make ourselves happy by winning, but also by meeting each other and exchanging experiences. Maybe some fans will go out for a beer together. That's exactly what it creates on the whole, and that is very important.

ISBHF President Elio Pascuzzo (left) and Czech Ball Hockey Chairman Ondřej Průša (right) during the signing of the agreement to host the 2026 Men's and Women's World Championship in Ostrava. Photo: Václav Nováček