Time: 7 min. 45.61 seconds
4 ½ lengths-3/4 length-nose-1/2 length-3/4length-3¾ lengths-14 lengths-1½ lengths-3/4 length-1¼ length-5 lengths-1¼ lengths-9 lengths

Owner: Paragan Horseboxes s.r.o., Trainer: Josef Váňa senior, Breeder: Carmel Stud

The first qualification race for VP 2021 was run on a cool afternoon, on good ground, a bit muddy in places on the ploughed fields. 2017 VP winner No time To Lose, now 12 years old, was the less fancied of the two Vaňa senior-trained runners, but he went to the front after the second last and won well. Sztorm, another outsider, finished 2nd, ahead of Casper, also not well fancied, in third place. They were followed home by more favoured horses: Player (2nd in VP 2020), Theophilos (winner of VP 2019) and Tzigane du Berlais (winner of VP 2018).  7-y-o  Evžen was the favourite, but  he finished in last place. All 14 runners got round (and will presumably thus qualify for the VP, though the race conditions have not yet been announced).

It is difficult to know what to make of the finishing order, but No Time To Lose ran a good race. Jan Kratochvíl, who was on the horse when they won the VP together in 2017, rode Mr Spex for Lokotrans.

There were a couple of races with 20 runners later in the afternoon. This provided a number of opportunities for less-known riders, and a busy afternoon for the big names. Jan Faltejsek was the only jockey to ride more than one winner. He won easily enough on two very promising young horses – Cheminée, on the classical steeplechase course, and Night Moon, which won very comfortably against a strong field in a Category III crosscountry chase. Jan Faltejsek has already ridden 20 winners in 2021, at Pisa, Milano, Merano, Wroclaw, Pardubice and Lysá-nad-Labem.