WC U20: Andrej Podkonický ends up as the coach of Slovakia, he is replaced by a well-known name

Podkonický has held this position only since the summer of this year and with the team he completed a preparatory camp and two tournaments. “We thank Andrej Podkonický for his previous anabasis in the national team under 20 years of age. We believe that our paths will be connected again, as Andrej works as an assistant to Craig Ramsay in our senior national team, “ said SZĽH president Miroslav Šatan.

“We ended the cooperation by mutual agreement. I want to wish the boys good luck at the championship. I believe that they will achieve a good result because they have the potential to do so, “ Andrej Podkonický commented.

Podkonický has had an unpleasant cause in the new season after arriving at HC Slovan Bratislava, where he became an assistant coach. Subsequently, HKM Zvolen published information that it still has a valid contract with it.

“It simply came to our notice then. After a successful championship season, Andrej and I shook hands and agreed to continue our cooperation. In addition, he has a valid contract until the end of the 2021/2022 season. Personally, I have a huge moral problem with a person who breaks the contracts in this way standing on the bench of the national team, ” said the president of the club Dušan Mráz.

Slovan suspended cooperation with Podkonický until the whole situation was resolved. Finally, the native of Zvolen apologized to his former club and fans and admitted a mistake.

NEW COACH

Ivan Feneš, who is also the coach of Slovakia U18, will lead the national team under the age of 20 at the upcoming World Championships. In addition to preparing for the World Cup from the beginning of December and the championship itself at the turn of the year in Canada, a preparatory tournament awaits him with the team in November.

“Since the Junior World Championships have been waiting for us for less than three months, we had to react promptly to the situation. The choice fell on Ivan Feneš, who, due to his many years of coaching work in the system of Slovak youth teams, knows the current junior year very well. This is very important when creating a nomination, ” revealed Miroslav Šatan.

In addition to working for the junior team, Ivan Feneš will also deal with coaching duties at the “eighteen”, where he works in the position of chief helmsman.

“In hockey terminology, we could say that I’m going to a guest, as I’m moving to the juniors for the next two events. However, I continue to be the coach of the ‘eighteen’ as a priority. When I received an offer from Mira Šatan, I reacted positively, as it is the second highest in the hierarchy of representations.

In addition, the junior championship is just around the corner. I’m really looking forward to it. I believe that the cooperation not only in the implementation team, but also with the players will be at a high level and that we will give Slovak fans a lot of joy during Christmas, “ said Ivan Feneš for the SZĽH website.

During his non-participation in SR 18, Boris Žabka will work with the team, who will be assisted by U17 coach Roman Sýkora.

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