Slovak juggler breaks his own record
Milan Roskopf, 44, of Bratislava broke his own record in "endurance iron-ball juggling" when he successfully juggled three 7.25 kilogram balls for 48.11 seconds, surpassing his previous record of 36.77 seconds.
The feat- in which he tossed more than 1.1 total tons of iron - took place June 14 at the International Festival of Records and Curiosities held Jin Pelhrímov, Czech Republic. The performance will be registered with the Guinness Book of World Records.
Ruskopf now holds nine juggling world records, including one set last year at the same contest in which he tossed iron balls 4,117 times in the "one hour contest". Last August in Piešťany, Ruskopf was also recorded in Guinness when he juggled three 5 kilogram balls 300 times.
New priests ordained
An ordination of eleven deacons and eleven priests took place in Bratsislava's Saint Martin's Cathedral on June 13 before a large crowd of family, friends and worshippers. Trnava Archdiocese bishop Ján Sokol and Monsignor Dominik Toth ran the services and Cardinal Angel Sodana, Secretary of the State of the Vatican, delivered congratulatory telegrams and apostolic blessings to the new clergy on behalf of Pope John Paul II.
"Pilot failure" likely cause of air show crash
After analysing the 'black box', several video recordings and the pilot's last conversation with the main terminal, British and Slovak aeronautical experts concluded that "pilot failure" was the likely cause of the June 6 SIAD air show crash which claimed the lives of a 35-year-old female spectator and Graham Wardell, the British pilot. Colonel Radomil Peca, chair of the investigation commission, added that the conclusion was not final, saying that "technical failure" would still be explored as a possible cause.
The crash occurred shortly before 13:00 at Bratislava'a Milan Rastislav Štefánik Airport during Wardell's eight minute performance in the British fighter plane Hawk 200. Wardell, 45, died instantly while the spectator's death was blamed on flying debris from the wreck. A group of British air experts collected all parts of the plane's remains and flew them to England for examination.
Comic-masked robbers get away with 1 million crowns
Two masked robbers held up a Rajecké Teplice branch of the Slovak Savings Bank shortly after 7:30 on Friday, June 11, making off with almost one million crowns worth of domestic and foreign currencies. According to police force deputy Jozef Petraý, both of the unidentified thieves wore "comic masks" as a disguise. The culprits also sprayed tear gas in the eyes of two female employees as well as a client, Petraý added. Police checks on roads proved futile and were called off at 14:00 that day, although a search for the bank robbers continues.
