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I'm now in a quiet residential area in the south of Prague, in fact just a few hundred metres away from the busy north-south thoroughfare that cuts through the city, symbolising the rat race - sometimes too hard to keep up with. Hidden in the greenery lies an inconspicuous white building. A few people are sitting outside it in the garden, chatting. As there is no reception desk, it took me a while to find the way to the director's office.

Last year a team of eight young Czechs became the first to conquer the upper part of the Ganges River in India rapid white water, full of unexpected turns, and sheer, sudden drops. All eight took to the river in white water kayaks designed to take an absolute beating. Boats that allow for fast turns and magnificent tricks in waves of surging and unforgiving water, with nowhere else to go but down. Ready for whatever lies ahead.

Forget about the picture postcards you've seen of Prague the city of the Renaissance and Baroque, palaces, and churches and a hundred golden spires: there is a whole different city out there to be explored among the pre-fabricated apartment blocks, edge of the town discos, concrete passageways and concrete bridges. A city of night with a constant stream of cars leaving for elsewhere: all form the backdrop for Benjamin Tucek's 2002 underground hit "Girlie" ("Devcatko" in Czech).

When visiting the Czech Republic it's hard if not impossible, to not reflect on Bohemia's rich and extensive history. By touring the country's many castles in the summertime visitors will also know that there are a great number of professionals dedicated to bringing the medieval ages back to life. Professionals trained in the way of the sword, the crossbow, the staff, and the pike. At places like Hradec Kralove, Liberec and especially Cesky Krumlov. Been to Cesky Krumlov you say? Well it may just be you've seen a certain dark knight conquered during

There are only a very few European film directors who were ever able to make the transition to Hollywood cinema - and arguably none who made an impact like Milos Forman - the Czech-born filmmaker whose One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest became the first film since 1934 to win all five major Academy Awards. Forman, whose Amadeus introduced millions of Americans to Mozart as genius but also as an impetuous young man, whose high-pitched laughter - the laughter of a child - erased the stodgy portrait of the composer we all learned about in school. It

As an artist he has worked for over forty years with metal - it has been the dominant material of his career - welded steel but also soldered sheets, cut, bent, torn, shaped into endless abstract forms, expressing a personal vision that at times has been bleak, at other times playful, often rebellious or provocative, sometimes even a little difficult to pin down. Work provocative enough to almost get him expelled from Prague's art academy in the 1960s - but enough of an obsession that he never gave up, continuing in North America where he moved

Czechs Today is our new monthly feature profiling prominent men and women shaping contemporary Czech life. To kick off our new series we decided to begin with sport - universally recognised and enjoyed - and an area where Czechs have made their mark. Among Czech athletes there are few who draw more attention than football's Pavel Nedved, the extremely talented midfielder who plays for Italy's Juventus Turin and captains the Czech national side. Adored by legions of fans both here and abroad, the Furia Ceca, as he is nicknamed in the Italian league,

Recently, the Czech team from the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games got together to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the event. Among those present was the gold-winning javelin-thrower from Helsinki, Dana Zatopkova, who celebrated her 80th birthday in September. In this week's Profile we look at Dana Zatopkova's sporting career and her life with her, now deceased, husband Emil.

It may seem unbelievable, but the Czech "dinosaurs" of rock-music, probably the most famous Czech band, Olympic, are celebrating 40 years on stage. You can't talk about the Czech rock scene and not mention this group.

Earlier this month, Zdenek Svestka, a Czech-born solar physicist based in Holland received the Nusl Prize, awarded annually by the Czech Astronomical Society to scientists who have contributed in a major way to the development of astronomy in the Czech Republic.