Good evening. Here is the Wednesday, July 31 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Slovakia's Olympics surprise
Anna Karolína Schmiedlová. (source: TASR/AP)
Slovak tennis player Anna Karolína Schmiedlová continues her winning streak, beating ninth-seed Barbora Krejčíková from the Czech Republic in two sets 6-4, 6-2.
Although Krejčíková was winning 2-0 in the second set, Schmiedlová then proceeded to win 6 games in a row, making it to the semi-finals.
During the competition, the Slovak gave the performance of a lifetime, beating four players who are ranked higher in the WTA rankings. In the round of 16, she defeated Roland Garros and Wimbledon finalist Jasmine Paolini of Italy.
Schmiedlová has improved Slovakia's singles tennis record in the era of independence; Dominika Cibulková advanced to the round of 16 at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, as did Karina Cíleková Habšudová at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
Related: Unfortunately, trap shooter Zuzana Rehák Štefečeková, Slovakia's medal hope, did not make it to the finals in her discipline. She won medals at three previous Olympics, with gold in the Tokyo Games.
MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE
TRANSPORT: New one-day highway stickers now available for drivers.
FOLKLORE: After years of neglect, folk costumes are all the rage again. One can cost up to several hundred euros.
IT SECURITY: Slovakia partners with Meta to combat fake videos with Pellegrini and Čaputová.
BRATISLAVA: The reconstructed toll house in the capital's Old Town will offer coffee and ice cream.
ARCHAEOLOGY: Rare finds are rewriting history of a castle in north Slovakia.
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FEATURE STORY
Life tied to radioactivity
Pavel Povinec. (source: ESET Science Award/ Linda Kisková Bohušová )
Pavel Povinec says that his entire life is tied to radioactivity. A professor of nuclear physics at the Faculty of Mathematics, Physics, and Informatics at Comenius University in Bratislava, his research on radioactivity has taken him across the world, including nuclear disaster sites and where atomic bomb tests were carried out in the Arctic and Pacific Oceans, and won him a team Nobel Prize for Peace. Read his story here.
EVENT FOR THE WEEKEND
One atmospheric festival
The Atmosféra music festival in the village of Hontianske Nemce. (source: TASR)
If huge crowds are not up your alley but you still would like to experience a festival atmosphere, then the village of Hontianske Nemce in south-central Slovakia is the place to be this weekend. Called Atmosféra, it's a small but eventful three-day festival taking place on a meadow surrounded by small hills and vineyards, headlined this year by bands such as Korben Dallas, Para, FVLCRVM, Medial Banana, Katka Koščová and more. Get your tickets for the 12th edition of the festival here.
IN OTHER NEWS
Justice Minister Boris Susko (Smer) unexpectedly dissolved the ministry's Analytical Centre. Its 26 employees have been either dismissed or agreed to leave. The centre's job was to collect, process, evaluate and provide reliable data necessary for making strategic decisions, for example in regards to the recovery plan. Former justice minister Mária Kolíková criticised the move, saying that the minister is "liquidating people at the ministry, its basic structures and continues to bully judges". (SME)
On Wednesday morning, the Bratislava airport was evacuated due to a bomb alert. Arrivals at the airport were not suspended, but passengers were ordered to remain on board. After the police searched the premises, the evacuation ended shortly before noon, with a total of six planned inbound and nine outbound flights delayed as a result. (TASR)
Passengers at the airport after they were allowed to return. (source: TASR)
As of August, motorway bypasses around some Slovak cities can be used without a toll sticker. These include bypasses around Bratislava, Nitra, Košice, Prešov, Poprad, Čadca and Žilina. According to the Transport Ministry, this amounts to 200 kilometres of motorways. The goal is to divert traffic away from a town to increase comfort and at the same time reduce air pollution. (TASR)
The Slovak banking sector recorded a net profit of €547.4 million in the first six months of this year, down €17 million year-on-year, according to the National Bank of Slovakia. The Slovak Banking Association attributes the decline to the new bank levy. In terms of profits, Slovak banks thus rank last in the region of Central Europe. (SITA)
Slovak trap shooter Zuzana Rehák Štefečeková did not make it to the finals on Wednesday, returning home without a fourth medal from the Olympics. In the Toyko games she won gold. (source: TASR)
WEATHER FOR THURSDAY: Cloud cover will change throughout the day, with showers and storms occasionally expected. Daily temperatures will rise to between 24 °C to 29 °C, or up to 34 °C in districts of western, southern and central Slovakia, as a level 1 high temperature warning has been issued for them. (SHMÚ)
AUGUST 1 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Božidara
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