The Fifth Edition of the Tatry Cup Took Place in the UK! “It’s All About Bringing People Together,” Says Michaela Paľková

Czechs and Slovaks are striving to keep the ball hockey community alive in the UK by organizing tournaments. At the end of August, they held the fifth edition of the Tatry Cup, which this year also welcomed British teams and even Czech referees. Co-organizer Michaela Paľková shares more.

The tournament even pleasantly surprised us organizers

Michaela, this year marked the fifth Tatry Cup. Looking back at the very first edition in 2021, how much has the tournament – as well as your ambitions and perception of its purpose – changed since then?

The purpose remains the same. It’s really all about bringing people together. The biggest change is that we managed to achieve exactly what we wanted from the very beginning: to convince English teams that what we’re doing is also for them. The first year was purely a “Czechoslovak” community without English teams. Now, in the fifth edition, it was evenly split.

This year’s Tatry Cup took place at the end of August. How would you evaluate this year’s edition? Did it meet your expectations?

Absolutely. It even pleasantly surprised us organizers. The genuine smiles of players, spectators, and participants, along with their feedback, showed us that what we’re doing makes sense.

British players are welcome and always will be

British players also appear in the tournament. Do you see their growing interest in ball hockey as a natural development, or the result of your efforts to involve them?

It’s also thanks to the work of people around ball hockey in BHUK (Ball Hockey UK – editor’s note). We simply offered them variety and the chance to join a community where hockey and ball hockey are in the heart. Players and clubs without international experience are grateful that our doors are open to them. They are, and always will be, welcome among us.

In the past, fans from the Czech Republic, specifically from Třebíz, attended the tournament alongside Czech and Slovak teams. Was there any visit like this year? And do you plan to actively invite more clubs from the Czech Republic and Slovakia in the future?

Yes. We are extremely grateful for every participation from Slovak and Czech players or teams, because they can bring quality and added value. They can be a huge inspiration and a lesson for players in the UK.

Czech referees brought world-class quality

Two referees from the Czech Republic, Jaroslav Pikula and Tomáš Zbořil, officiated at the tournament. What kind of contribution was that in your view?

It’s basically the same as with players and clubs from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. They represent world-class quality, which can be a big benefit for English referees. For next year, we’re planning to invite two Czech and two English referees, so the Czech ones can help mentor them. The underlying idea is to help English referees move closer to the Czech level of quality.

The Tatry Cup has now completed five editions. What are your plans for the future? Do you already have an idea of where the tournament should be heading – sport-wise, organizationally, or community-wise?

We’re essentially letting the tournament flow and grow naturally. We’re open to anything that brings joy, smiles, and happiness. And we want it to continue being not just about ball hockey, but also about connecting cultures and building friendships. Even though the symbolic circle that holds everyone together is, indeed, ball hockey.