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Concertino Praga - Czech Radio's prestigious international competition for young musicians - has just announced the winners of this year's contest. Ever since this special event for up and coming musicians was established 41 years ago, it has become a conveyer belt for young talent in the world of classical music.

Specialists have revealed that there was a sharp rise in the incidence in tick-borne encephalitis, or TBE, in the Czech Republic last year. Some 1000 people contracted the potentially deadly disease which is transmitted by deer ticks: 60 percent more than in 2005. Earlier Jan Velinger spoke to Roman Prymula, the dean of the Military Medical Academy at the University of Defence in Hradec Kralove, and asked him about the reasons behind the sudden jump.

A year ago we reported on a Czech expedition exploring the world's largest salt cave in Iran. As a matter of fact, Czech explorers have also been to the deepest cave in the world. Two speleologists from the city of Brno have just returned from Abkhazia where an international expedition increased the penetrated depth to 2,170 metres, firmly establishing the Krubera-Voronya as the deepest cave on earth.

Last November saw the dramatic arrest of controversial football boss Jaroslav Starka, in one of the most high-profile police operations the country has seen in recent years. In a carefully coordinated swoop, masked and armed commandos blocked and then surrounded Mr Starka's car as it made its way along a Czech motorway before taking the suspect into custody. Mr Starka had long been suspected of having ties with the underworld. He and a number of associates were arrested for the alleged kidnapping and subsequent death of Lambert Krejcir, the father

A statue by Wilhelm Lehmbruck, which used to stand in the functionalist Tugendhat Villa in the Moravian capital of Brno, was sold to an anonymous bidder for one million pounds on Monday. The "Torso of a Walking Woman" was auctioned off at Sotheby's. But the decision to sell the art in London is now influencing decision-making in the Czech Republic, where Brno city councillors fear the Tugendhat Villa would face a similar fate if it were returned to its original owners.

The decision to adopt a child is a big choice for a couple to make and once they have agreed on it they are usually eager to bring their new baby or child home. However, as elsewhere, adopting a child in the Czech Republic can be a long and painful process. There are long queues of childless couples waiting to adopt kids- and seemingly - a lack of children. Yet at this time there are 22 thousand children in institutional care waiting to find new homes. Dr. Petra Vrtbovska from the Prague Institute for Foster Care explains what's keeping them

Crowds thronged Prague's Strasnice crematorium on Tuesday to pay their last respects to the composer Karel Svoboda, who committed suicide last week. The sudden death of this hugely successful songwriter came as a shock to many Czechs. Some have even taken it so badly that they are seeking medical help.

Two weeks after the United States officially petitioned the Czech Republic for authorisation to operate a radar base in the country, the matter continues to make headlines. The domestic political scene is divided on the issue. While the governing Civic and Christian Democrats say they support the plan, the opposition Communists and Social Democrats are demanding a referendum on the issue.

The Czech football goalkeeper Petr Cech made headlines around the world when he suffered a potentially life-threatening injury during a game with his club Chelsea in October. There were fears that the injury, a skull fracture, could keep him out of action for the rest of the season, and even worries he might never regain his world's-best form. But Cech has made a fantastic recovery - and a speedy return. He conceded two goals in his first game back on January 20, but since then has kept several clean sheets. I asked Petr Cech how satisfied he was

The sentencing of the chairman of Hyundai Motors has rocked South Korea and sent shockwaves through the car world. Chung Mong-koo was sentenced to three years in prison on Monday for embezzlement and breach of trust. Mr Chung - who vowed to appeal - is accused of feathering his nest with a multi-million dollar slush fund, which was also used to bribe politicians. The case is being keenly watched here in the Czech Republic, where work has begun on a huge Hyundai car plant.