Monday, September 21, 2009

OLOMOUC, CZECH REPUBLIC. THE HOME TOWN OF JIRI HUDLER

by HOCKEY AND TOURISM

Jiri Hudler, the new Czech Republic hockey team captain was shining during the Euro Hockey Tours opener that was held in Karlovy Vary this month.He led his team to the tournament victory scoring the 1-1 goal at 17:30 of the final game against Russia. He tied the game a second time at 57:21 after Russia held a 2-1 lead for most of regulation. A shoot-out decided and the game-winning goal was scored by who else than Hudler.


Jiri Hudler - Czech Team Captain

Jiri Hudler was born January 4, 1984 in Olomouc, Czech Republic. The first choice, 58th overall selection of the Detroit Red Wings in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, Hudler honed his skills in the Czech Republic before making his North American debut in 2003-04. This summer the young czech rejected the Red Wings offer and joint Moscow Dynamo of KHL to play in Russia and be able to join his national team.

He spent his childhood in Olomouc, the Czech beauteful sity which we are about to discover today.

The late barocco sity of Olomouc is a city in Moravia, in the east of the Czech Republic. The city is located on the Morava river and is the ecclesiastical metropolis of Moravia.

Olomouc contains several large squares, the chief of which is adorned with Holy Trinity Column, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The column is 115 ft (35 m) high and was built in 1716–1754.

The most prominent church is the Saint Wenceslas cathedral. In the end of the 19th century it was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style, but it kept many parts from the original church, which had also been rebuilt many times (Romanesque crypt, Gothic cloister, Baroque chapels). The highest of its three spires is 328 ft (100 m) The church neighbours with the Romanesque Bishop’s Palace (often incorrectly called the Přemyslid Palace), a 12th century Romanesque building. (image) The real Přemyslid Palace, i.e. the residence of Olomouc members of the governing Přemyslid Dynasty, used to stand nearby.



The Saint Maurice Church, a fine Gothic building of the 15th century, and the Saint Michael’s Church are also worth mentioning. The Neo-baroque chapel of Saint John Sarkander stands on the place of a former town prison. Catholic priest John Sarkander was imprisoned here in the beginning of the Thirty Years' War. He was accused of collaboration with the enemy and tortured here, but did not reveal anything because of the Seal of Confession, and died. The torturing rack and Sarkander’s gravestone are preserved here. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II during his visit in Olomouc in 1995.

Another place that John Paul II visited here was Svatý Kopeček, a part of Olomouc lying on a hill, with the magnificent Baroque church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary looking down at the city. The Pope promoted the church to Minor Basilica.

The principal secular building is the town hall, completed in the 15th century, flanked on one side by a Gothic chapel, transformed now into a museum. It possesses a tower 250 ft (76 m) high adorned with an astronomical clock.

The old university founded in 1573 and suppressed in 1860, was reopened in 1946 and called Palacký University.

Olomouc is also proud of its six Baroque fountains. The fountains survived in such a number thanks to cautious policy of the city council. While most European cities were removing old fountains after they had built their water supply piping, Olomouc decided to keep them as water reservoirs in case of fire. For their decoration ancient Roman motifs were used. Five of them depict Roman gods Jupiter, Mercury, Triton, Neptune and Hercules, and one depicts Julius Caesar, the legendary founder of the city.



There are few monasteries in Olomouc, including Hradisko Monastery, Convent of Dominican Sisters in Olomouc and others.

Despite its considerable charms, Olomouc has not been discovered by tourists in the same way that Prague, Český Krumlov and Karlovy Vary have. Its inner city is the second-largest historical monuments preserve in the country, after Prague.

One of Olomouc's famous sons was the film-maker Edgar G. Ulmer, who was born in Olomouc in 1904, but who always preferred to give Vienna as his birthplace, as this sounded less provincial. Another notable son of Olomouc is football coach Karel Brückner, formerly head coach of the Czech national team and later head coach of Austria. Now we can added Jiri Hudler to this list of honnor


HC Olomouc (white jersey)

The hockey club of Olomouc (HC Olomouc) was first established in 1929 became a member of Moravian hockey league, but proved itself as a real in 1955 only under name of Sprtak Moravia Olomouc.
Even this club has produced some well known players (as Tomas Kucharchik for example) the most popular is Jiri Dopita who played for Czech national team, Flyers and Oilers. Dopita is a member of the famous 1998 Czech team which won Nagano's Olympic.
But who knows, maybe Jiri Hudler in some years will be same popular his elder friend. He has all opportunities to do it.

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