After a two year break no one foresaw because of the pandemic, the Rector’s Sports Day made a big comeback last Wednesday at Charles University. Classic sports but also for example chess featured prominently. Students and lecturers gave up the classroom and study halls for activity outside on what turned out to be a beautiful day in May.
In all, a great number of people from Charles University had fun at all the sports venues of Charles University, with the most activities traditionally taking place at the Hostivař Sports Centre (SCUK). In Prague alone sports were played at 11 different venues, and in addition, those looking forward to rafting races on the Sázava and Vltava rivers, met at Prague’s Main Railway Station in the morning while those interested in seakayaking travelled to Nová Rabyně in Slapy. In Hradec Králové there were sports at four venues, in Plzeň at five.
Members of the Rector's Board: from left, also participated: Martin Čihák, David Hurný, Markéta Martínková, Tomáš Skopal, Martin Vlach, Jan Polák.
More than 30 kinds of sports awaited participants, including the first time included mind sport chess; refreshments were also prepared for all. This year the event was organized by the Department of Physical Education of the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of Charles University. “We are very satisfied with the whole sports day and overall participation was very good after the long break. There was great interest in the newly added chess competition and also in various forms of Aerobics and Body & Mind exercises. A record number of teams entered the volleyball tournament,” Tomáš Jaroš, the head of the Department of Physical Education at the faculty, said on behalf of the organisers.
More than 1,200 athletes visited the sports grounds in Prague. In Hradec Králové more than 160 students participated in sports, in Pilsen 271 students. The most numerous sporting event was the volleyball tournament, which was held on the Albertov courts by this year's organiser. A total of 19 teams participated, 10 of them from the the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics.
There were also competitions in basketball, floorball and softball, and individual sports on the agenda included orienteering, cycling, golf and paddleboarding on the Hostivařská Dam. The more adventurous participants could go down rivers, climb an artificial wall, try summer biathlon or conquer the Hradec Králové Mephared, the inter-faculty campus of the Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine. Those interested could also try not so well-known disciplines: for example, sports called Kinball, Taebo or Kanjam. The offer of the 2022 Rector's Sports Day was nothing if not varied. An incredible day with a long tradition at Charles University!
