News in brief for July 9: Top headlines for Czechia on Sunday

Czech tennis star Markéta Vondroušová defeated compatriot Maria Bouzková on Sunday afternoon to advance to the quarterfinals in Wimbledon. After a tough fight, Vondroušová defeated Bouzková 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 to secure her first trip to the round of eight at the London tournament. The match lasted two hours and 12 minutes.

Vondroušová, a 24-year-old native of Sokolov, managed to recover after losing the first set and regain control of the match. In the quarterfinals, Vondroušová will face the winner of a match between fourth-seeded American Jessica Pegula and Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko.

The results of a Median survey for Czech Radio show that 63 percent of Czechs believe that the government is insufficiently combating disinformation. The survey, which took place at the end of June and involved 1,000 people over the age of 18, revealed that only 18 percent of the public think the fight against disinformation is sufficient.

These findings indicate that the majority of Czech society is concerned about the insufficient efforts of the government in this area. Disinformation has become a big topic in the public sphere in recent years, and many want more effective measures to be taken to combat it.

Czech Minister of Education Mikuláš Bek is planning some fundamental changes to the country's school system, and has proposed canceling the ninth grade of primary schools and extending compulsory school attendance through secondary school. However, this idea has been met with resistance from principals and teachers, who fear negative effects on the educational process.

According to Minister Bek, this change would bring greater continuity in education and allow students to better prepare for the demanding high school curriculum. In addition, according to him, failure in secondary education would decrease and the quality of teaching would increase.

Czech tennis players Marie Bouzková and Markéta Vondroušová will compete against each other in the round of 16 at Wimbledon today. Their match will start the day's program on court number 2 at 12 p.m. Prague time. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals of the London tennis tournament.

Vondroušová has dominated the pair's meetings on the WTA circuit, where she has not yet lost a set in two matches against Bouzková. Most recently, she topped her 6-1, 6-1 in Indian Wells this March. By advancing to the quarterfinals, Bouzková would equal her Wimbledon record from last year. Vondroušová has already achieved her best performance at Wimbledon.

Inflation in the Czech Republic continued to slow down in June, falling below ten percent for the first time since January 2022, say analysts contacted by ČTK. According to them, a strong crown and lower demand have led to slower growth in consumer prices.

"We estimate annual inflation for June at 9.7 percent," Raiffeisenbank analysts told Czech News Agency. "The biggest contributor to the disinflation process is falling fuel prices, which were down by more than 20 percent year-on-year." In May, Czech inflation was 11.1 percent. Official data on June inflation will be published by the Czech Statistical Office on Thursday.

A ban on open flames in parks, gardens, and other places where there is a risk of fire is now valid in Prague until further notice, according to city spokesperson Vít Hofman. The ban was originally supposed to apply from midday on Friday to 8 p.m. on Monday, but has been extended due to this weekend's extreme heat.

Prague has banned starting fires, smoking, and using fireworks in forests, parks, gardens, and other locations where there is an increased risk of fire, including hay and straw warehouses and fields. The regulation applies not only directly within these areas, but also within 50 meters of their edges.

Czech tennis players Jiří Lehečka and Petra Kvitová have joined compatriots Markéta Vondroušová and Marie Bouzková in the round of 16 at this year's Wimbledon tennis tournament in London. Despite having to face tough opponents and rain, they both managed to win on Saturday.

Lehečka topped 16th-seeded American Tommy Paul in a hard-fought five-set duel 6-2, 7-6, 6-7, 6-7, 6-2. With this victory, Lehečka has advanced to the Wimbledon round of 16 for the first time in his career. Two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitová, meanwhile, topped Natalija Stevanović 6-3, 7-5.

Nine out of the roughly 160 long-term measuring stations in the Czech Republic recorded temperature records for July 8. The highest temperatures were measured mainly in the west and northwest of the country; the highest value, 34 degrees Celsius, was measured at the station in Plzeň-Bolevec. 

This temperature record were confirmed by Filip Smola from the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute. Meteorologists have warned of extreme high temperatures and an increased risk of fires this weekend; firefighters already recorded more than 140 fires during Saturday. Even higher temperatures are expected throughout the country on Sunday.

The 57th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in West Bohemia sold 123,517 tickets in 2023, surpassing last year's total of 121,015, according to festival organizers. In 2019, the festival sold 139,271 tickets. The festival had 10,989 accredited visitors, with 9,085 holding festival passes. There were a total of 445 film screenings at this year's festival.

The Karlovy Vary festival showcased 36 world premieres, 11 international premieres, and five European premieres. Notable attendees included Russell Crowe, Ewan McGregor, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender. The President's Award was presented to actresses Daniela Kolářová and Robin Wright on Saturday evening.

Czech skier Jiří Pliska, a specialist in cross country races, has died at the age of 42, according to his team eD System Silvini. The team writes that Pliska died on July 2 while rappelling down a mountain in the US state of Wyoming. At last year's Jizerská padesátka cross-country race, Pliska finished in 20th place and first among Czechs.

"Plizíček was our family, team captain, friend, coach, role model and mentor who never left anyone in the lurch," his team writes. "We ask everyone for a few minutes of silence for beautiful memories with a view to the sky. This unexpected event hit us all painfully."

British gangs are using Czech-made Skorpion sub-machine guns, according to British press. On Friday, the killer of 26-year-old Elle Edwards, the victim of a clash between two gangs on Christmas day last year, was sentenced to life in prison. At his trial, prosecutors revealed that Connor Chapman used a Czech-made weapon that has become especially popular among British gangs.

The Skorpion is made by Czech gun manufacturer Česká zbrojovka, which has produced 210,000 of them since the 1960s. It can fire 750 rounds per minute and has a high shooting accuracy of up to 150 meters. "The issue of weapons is a longstanding one," former police officer Peter Williams told the BBC. "It started to manifest itself when the Berlin Wall came down in 1989 and the barriers of Europe opened."