PRAGUE – The Czech ice hockey association CSLH has named Vladimir Ruzicka head coach at a meeting in Prague on Saturday. The 2005 world champion takes over after Alois Hadamczik has resigned.

Ruzicka and the Czechs agreed on a two-year contract that includes the 2009 and 2010 IIHF World Championships and the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. Ruzicka was the assistant coach from 2002 and 2004 when he became head coach after the death of Ivan Hlinka. He won the 2005 World Championship in Vienna but resigned to be fully focused on his duties as a club team coach with Slavia Prague.

His successor Alois Hadamczik won Olympic bronze and World Championship silver the following year but failed to qualify for the semi-finals in the last two World Championships and resigned consequently last May after the quarterfinal loss to Sweden. Ruzicka is still with Slavia Prague but will continue his job with the club from the Czech capital. He recently won the Czech Extraliga with Slavia and also qualified for the 2008-2009 IIHF Champions Hockey League.

Ruzicka’s assistants will be Josef Jandac and Ondrej Weissmann. Jandac quits HC Mountfield Ceske Budejovice, another Czech top team and Champions Hockey League participant, where he is replaced by Ernest Bokros coming from Vitkovice Ostrava. Weissmann has been working for the Czech association for several years including duties as an assistant coach of the men’s national team and the under-20 national team. Weissmann was already Ruzicka’s assistant at the golden 2005 World Championship and he was also head coach for several exhibition games prior to the tournament.