This weekend, trainer Radim Bodlák (picture) is running horses at Wroclaw, Poland, and at Lysá nad Labem, near Prague. The following interview by Petr Guth first appeared in the Czech language pages of Dostihový svět.

The raceday programme at Lysá nad Labem on Monday, May 1st offers a rather unusual contest between the 2nd and 3rd finishers in last year’s Swedish Grand National at Strömsholm. Al Bustan, trained by Stanislav Popelka, took second place in Sweden, and was followed home by Rockinger. In the autumn of last year, Rockinger moved from his Swedish trainer to Radim Bodlák, and the trainer states that the horse’s main target for this year is to return to Strömsholm. Lysá nad Labem is the first major step in his preparation.

“His Swedish owner sent him to be trained specifically for their Grand National,” Radim Bodlák confirms. “He is running at Lysá, with the idea that we are not going to squeeze the last ounce out of him. Nevertheless, it does not mean that we are just giving him an outing and we are not concerned about the result. If that were the case, there would be no point in going to Lysáat all, or in bringing Niklas Lovén over to ride him in such a race. Among foreign jockeys, Swedish jockey Lovén is definitely the one who has the best knowledge of the steeplechase courses in the Czech Republic.

Rockinger will be having his first race for Bodlák. “He was not in great shape when he arrived, and we have spent half a year building him up. I must admit that I did not pay much attention to his performance last year at Strömsholm, but we will have him in good physical shape, and I think he can do better than last year. We’ll see how he does against Al Bustan on Monday.”

Before that, on Sunday, Czech-trained horses will be running at this year’s first meeting over fences at Wroclaw, in Poland, and Radim Bodlák will be there. He is taking two horses, both of which will be ridden by Niklas Lovén. “This outing to Poland will also be mainly for preparatory races. Taurito is getting ready for Sweden, and Douna is being prepared for Pardubice. As far at Wroclaw is concerned, I am certainly reckoning with the Crystal Cup race (the first-ever official race at Wroclaw in the Crystal Cup series will be run on Sunday, June 11^th). As far as the other race days there are concerned, they are not priorities for our horses, but we will go there when their races fit in with the plans for each horse.”

The main target destination this year remains Sweden, where the trainer plans to return this year not only for jumps races, but also for races on the flat. Sweden is the main target for 3-y-o Celeste. She finished 3^rd at Jägersro Galop in Sweden at the beginning of April, and then pleased her connections with her 2^nd place finish in the Category I Three-year-old Fillies Stakes at Bratislava. She has now been entered for the Turf Gala meeting at Bratislava, and the connections are making up their minds whether to send her to Bratislava, or whether to run her in Sweden at the end of May.