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From the Olympics Toword Tomorrow
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Czechs win first-ever ice hockey gold, 1-0 over Russia
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13:45 CZE 1-0 RUS
The Czech Republic ended 30 years of Olympic disappointment and frustration Sunday, winning its first-ever ice hockey gold medal with a 1-0 triumph over traditional rival Russia at the Big Hat ice arena.
Defenseman Petr Svoboda scored at 8:08 of the third period and then combined with the other Czech defenders to shut down Russia's high-powered offense as the Czech Republic also won its first gold medal of the 18th Olympic Winter Games in Nagano.
Svoboda's goal came off a face-off in the middle of the third period as the left-handed defender drilled a slap shot off the glove of Russian goalie Mikhail Shtalenkov into the upper left-hand corner of the net.
''Nobody gave us a chance but we believed in each other from the beginning of the tournament. We knew that if there was a problem we had Hasek behind us. It's a great feeling because we won against the best teams -- Canada, the U.S. and Russia,'' said Svoboda.
Czech goaltender Dominik Hasek, who has been credited with carrying the Czech team almost single-handedly into the final, stopped 20 shots, but was largely unchallenged in the last two periods as the defense kept the Russians in disarray.
''We were able to limit the Russians to only 20 shots. Our goal going into the game was to slow down their fast skaters in the neutral zone and interrupt their rhythm and I think we did that,'' said Slavomir Lener, coach of the Czech Republic.
The victory is particularly sweet for the Czechs since they had been given little chance in the first Olympic ice hockey tournament featuring the stars of North America's National Hockey League (NHL).
Before facing Russia for the gold, the Czechs soundly defeated the United States 4-1 in the quarterfinals and then edged gold-medal favorite Canada in a dramatic 2-1 shoot-out.
Before Nagano, the Czech Republic had won the 1996 world championship title in Vienna and had two third place finished in 1993 and 1997.
As Czechoslovakia, before splitting into two countries in 1993, the ice hockey team had to settle for four Olympic silver medals and four bronze -- including a bronze in the 1920 Antwerp summer games.
The Soviet Union, mostly manned by Russian players, had always been Czechoslovakia's biggest nemesis -- winning eight gold medals from 1956 along with a silver in 1980 and a bronze in 1960.
Playing as Russia for the first time four years ago in Lillehammer, the heir to the great Soviet teams of the past finished fourth after a 4-0 loss to Finland in the bronze medal game.
On Saturday, Finland had won its second straight bronze medal with a 3-2 victory over Canada.
The play of the Czech goaltender, known as ''The Dominator'' was phenomenal throughout the tournament and, despite having a relatively quiet game in the final, Hasek was the key factor for the Czechs in Nagano.
''This feels great, it is the happiest day in my hockey career,'' said Hasek, last yaer's most valuable player in the NHL.
''I always try to do my best for the Buffalo Sabres but nothing compares to winning a gold medal for your country. The gold medal is something I've never had before,'' a beaming Hasek said after receiving his gold medal. (Kyodo News)
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Copyright 1998 The Shinano Mainichi Shimbun