CZECH REPUBLIC 29th May 2011

Zdeněk Smrčka became the Czech Republic's barista champion in early May, after a contest held in Prague, reports Czech National Coordinator Petra Veselá.

We found a great place for the competitions, the Mosaic House hotel and club, right in the centre of Prague.

On the first day of the three-day event we held a semifinal round, and the next day, in the final, the winner was Zdeněk Smrčka, a very good barista who has been competing for a long time. He also won the Latte Art championship last year.

On the third day of the Championships, we held two other competitions, and the winner of the Latte Art championship was Michal Nováček from Brno.

The Coffee in Good Spirits winner was Jiří Richter, who was the CIGS champion for the second time.

The winners will represent the Czech Republic at the upcoming World Championships in both Bogotá and Maastricht.

Pictured is new Czech barista champion Zdeněk Smrčka (photo by Qwerty)