Liberec

Liberec /ˈlɪbərɛts/ (Czech pronunciation: [ˈlɪbɛrɛt͡s]; German: Reichenberg [ˈʀaɪ̯çənbɛʁk]) is a city in the Czech Republic. Located on the Lusatian Neisse and surrounded by the Jizera Mountains and Ještěd-Kozákov Ridge, it is the fifth-largest city in the Czech Republic.

Settled by German and Flemish migrants from the 14th century until their expulsion after World War II, Liberec was once home to a thriving textile industry and hence nicknamed the "Manchester of Bohemia". For many Czechs, Liberec is mostly associated with the city's dominant Ještěd Tower. Since the end of the 19th century, the city has been a conurbation with the suburb of Vratislavice and the neighboring town of Jablonec nad Nisou. Therefore, the total area with suburbs encompasses 150,000 inhabitants. This makes Liberec the third-largest city (with suburbs) in Bohemia after Prague and Plzeň.

History

Liberec was first mentioned in a document of 1348 and from 1622 to 1634 was among the possessions of Albrecht von Wallenstein. After his death it belonged to the Gallas and Clam Gallas families. The cloth-making industry was introduced in 1579. The prosperous local industry was interrupted by the Thirty Years' War and a great plague in the 1680s. The Battle of Reichenberg between Austria and Prussia occurred nearby in 1757 during the Seven Years' War.

Liberec Region

Liberec Region (Czech: Liberecký kraj) is an administrative unit (Czech: kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Liberec. The region shares international borders with Germany and Poland. Domestically the region borders the Ústí nad Labem Region to the west, the Central Bohemian Region to the south and the Hradec Králové Region to the east.

Cities and towns

The largest cities in Liberec region include:

Physical geography

The region's landscape includes the Jizera Mountains, part of the Krkonoše Mountains and part of the Lusatian Mountains.

The region was affected by flash floods in August 2010, with swelling of the river Smědá being one of the factors to prompt evacuation efforts in the region.

Demography

As of 1 January 2012 the population of the Liberec Region was 438,600 with 214,983 males and 223,617 females, accounting for 49.0% and 51.0% of the population respectively.

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009

The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 (Czech: Mistrovství světa v klasickém lyžování Liberec 2009) took place 18 February – 1 March 2009 in Liberec, Czech Republic. This was the fourth time these championships were hosted either in the Czech Republic or in Czechoslovakia, having done so at Janské Lázně (1925) and Vysoké Tatry (both in 1935 and 1970).

The biggest sports event in the country's history, it hosted 589 athletes from 61 countries. Women's ski jumping and Men's Nordic combined 10 km mass start events debuted at theses championships, both won by Americans Lindsey Van and Todd Lodwick, respectively. Norway won the most medals with twelve and most golds with five, all in the men's cross-country skiing events, including three from Petter Northug. Germany finished second in the total medal count with nine though none of them were gold (eight silver and one bronze). Finland finished third in the medal count with eight with three golds, all from Aino-Kaisa Saarinen in women's cross-country skiing. Fourth in total medal count, but second in gold medal count was the United States with six, including four golds, who prior to these championships, had won only three medals in all of the previous championships combined, including four medals in Nordic combined (Lodwick: two golds, Bill Demong: one gold and one bronze). Kikkan Randall became the first American woman to medal in cross country skiing at the world championships with her silver in the individual sprint.