Hrochová and Vích Set New Records at the Běchovice Race in Prague

On Sunday, Prague hosted the 130th, anniversary edition of the Běchovice–Prague race, which doubles as the Czech national road running championship over 10 km. Hrochová (Škoda Plzeň) took the women's title and the course's all-time record — 32:28 — while Vích (Dukla Praha) won the men's race, becoming the first Czech since 2001 to run the distance in under 30 minutes.

An all-time record for the women

Hrochová, a protégée of coach Vladimír Bartůněk, finished 9th in the marathon at this year's European Championships in Birmingham, and in Běchovice she led from the very first meters, never letting her rivals close the gap. The win marked her 23rd national title across various disciplines. She improved her own best time on the course, set in 2024, by 42 seconds, and beat the course's all-time record — held since 2023 by Kenya's Glorious Jepkirui — by 13 seconds.

"I ran for myself, by feel, and to win. I wasn't planning anything else," the 30-year-old runner said in an interview on the federation's live stream. Michaela Čepová finished second, 1:18 behind, with Šoukalová (Olymp Brno) taking third.

Vích breaks 30 minutes

Vích, who had run Běchovice only once before — as a junior in 2016 — pulled away from the field right from the start of the road race. He clocked 29:51, becoming the first Czech to run the course in under 30 minutes since Pavel Faschingbauer did it in 2001.

"I won, so I'm happy. At Běchovice people usually race for the win rather than for a specific time," said the Czech record holder in the 3,000m steeplechase. He revealed that after the season he is moving from the track to the road and preparing for a spring marathon, and admitted that the famous climb up Hrdlořezy hill was brutal: "For me it was awful. It's genuinely terrible pain. It hurt."

Jáchym Kovář (A.C. Tepo Kladno) took silver, 36 seconds behind, with Vebr (Škoda Plzeň) claiming bronze.

A record turnout

More than 4,000 runners took part in the anniversary, 130th edition of the race — a new participation record, beating the previous mark set in 1982.

Final results of the Czech 10 km road running championship (Běchovice–Prague). Men: 1. Vích (Dukla Praha) 29:51, 2. Kovář (A.C. Tepo Kladno) 30:27, 3. Vebr (Škoda Plzeň) 30:50. Women: 1. Hrochová (Škoda Plzeň) 32:28, 2. Čepová (Hradec Králové) 33:46, 3. Šoukalová (Olymp Brno) 35:53.

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Around Prague, based on reporting by denik.cz