How did somebody from the Netherlands become head coach of the Czech women’s softball team?
Well finally they found me! This is the ninth country that I’ve coached in, so finally they found me. Maybe they should have found me a bit earlier. (laughing)

What were the previous countries?
The longest was Russia, I coached there for nine years. I also coached the Dutch, the Belgian, the French, the Israeli... I coached the Austrian junior team, the Bulgarian national team--I’ve done a lot of things and now the Czech team.

Does coaching in a foreign country present any communication problems?
Not at all. Everybody speaks and understands English and that’s good.

And how does this team compare to the ones in other countries you’ve seen?
Well it’s difficult to compare but I’d say we’re doing pretty well right now. Certainly our performance this week is getting to the level we want to be at.

Yes, congratulations. Finishing first place at Prague Softball Week, is it an expected result or a surprise?
Well, the first game was tricky (2-1 loss to AIST Stars). It was a very good game but we couldn’t get any hits. The second game was terrible against the Eagles, but we won, and then we got better and I’m more than delighted about the overall performance of the team.

Do you think this has prepared you well for the European Championship next week?
Absolutely, that’s the most important week of the whole year and we’re working so hard for it. But being first or second or third was not the main thing this week. More important is our performance, and we had a very good performance in the last two days, so that’s what I’m happy about.

Do you expect the competition next week to be more difficult than this?
Oh, you bet. We’re facing the Dutch, and they’re almost professional. Italy is also a very strong opponent. Russia has Dasha Shembarova pitching almost of the games and shutting out all the teams so it will be very tough competition.

Is there anything you’d still like to improve on this team?
Every player knows what she has to work on and we’re trying to get them to work on those things. They’re finding out now what it is to bring in all of their individual contributions and make a team. We all have to do things individually to contribute to the team’s success.

And so what more can you do between now and the start of the Championship to accomplish that?
We’re going away to a wellness resort to relax and take their minds of softball for a while, and then we’re coming back and have a few practices to get ready for the start of the tournament.

The last two days you got very good pitching performances from Lucie Maršíková. I suppose she’s your ace?
I think all of our pitchers did well. Jitka Horová and Vendy Drahá both pitched great. Petra Křiklánova came back from a first game that wasn’t so good to pitch better the next time, so the pitching is not a real concern.

Again, congratulations on today and good luck next week at the European Championship.
Thank you. A little luck we need. (smiling)