Friday will see the start of an important annual road cycling race
involving riders from seven countries, who will face a demanding
three-stage circuit linking the south Bohemian town of Ceske Budejovice,
Linz in Austria, and Passau in Germany. The event - known as the Peace and
Friendship race - has a long tradition, dating back to the 1960s, a time
when Austria, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia were of course separated by
the Iron Curtain.