David Liška will celebrate his 17^th birthday in July, but he is already making his mark on our racecourses. David is a talented apprentice coming to the end of his first year at the School for Apprentices located at Prague Velká Chuchle racecourse. He has ridden in 37 races (including one in France, at Lyon). On Sunday, June 4^th he will be representing the Czech Republic in the international apprentice meeting at races in Prague. How well will he do?

In one of the two races for apprentices on Sunday, you will be on Mumbai. What are your ambitions for this race? 
I believe in Mumbai. I think she’s a good mare. She won last time out, and we’ll see how she goes this time. I’m really pleased that trainer [Ludvík] Haris is giving me a chance on such a good horse.

A few days ago at Prague Velká Chuchle, you won on Evžen, trained by Štěpánka Myšková. It was your first ride for her. How did you get to work with her? 
The arrange came through [trainer] Václav Luka, and I didn’t know until the last moment whether I’d be able ride Evžen, because the Luka stable had Solai in the race. In any case, the horse is just great, and I’m very grateful to the owners and to the trainer.

Shall we go back to the very beginning? What brought you to racing, or, rather, how did you come to start working for Luka Racing? 
What brought me to racing was the adrenalin rush that comes with it. I joined the Lukas quite by chance. There was a racing stable near where I lived, and I wrote an e-mail to them [Luka Racing in based at Bošovice, just outside Písek, less than an hour’s drive southwards down the highway that passes Prague Velká Chuchle]. In reaction, there was an offer to go and have a look, and now I’ve been going there for three years.

And most of your opportunities to ride have come from Václav Luka…
Yes, that’s right. I got my first chance 11 months from the day when I started with the Lukas. It was at Karlovy Vary, on a mare called Annaque.

You had to wait some time for your first winner. It came last September on Singapore Spice. What kind of memories do you have of this? 
It was just great. I have to admit that I was beginning to get a bit fed up, and this win brought back my taste for riding. It stimulated me quite a bit.

As a student at the School for Apprentices at Velká Chuchle, you spend more time in Prague that at Bošovice, but I still want to ask you if you have any favourite horses at Luka Racing? 
Yes, several of them. Especially Phu Hai and Wireless, which are our best horses. I also like riding Alpha Wolf.

What subjects do you like at school? 
My favourites are practical work with horses, Rules of Racing, Nutrition and Feeding.

And, at the other extreme, what subjects do you not like? 
I struggle with Mathematics and with Czech.

Do you model yourself on any jockey, from the Czech Republic or from abroad? 
My model is Theo Bachelot. We met at the European Jockeys’ Cup meeting at Velká Chuchle, and he gave me some advice.

You are tall enough for low weights to be problem. Is that the case? 
It depends. I have to sweat to do 53 kg. I can just about do 52 kg, but that is right on the limit. But I wouldn’t say that I struggle a lot with my weight.

Do you have a sporting dream or target? 
I’d like to line up for the Czech Derby, and to work my way as far as I can – to France, to England, or to Germany.

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This interview, by Jana Šejnohová, first appeared in the Czech language pages of Dostihový svět.