Olympic champions Czech Republic retained the world ice hockey title when they beat neighbors Slovakia 5-3 in a highly charged final on Sunday.

It was the first world championship final between the two former compatriots of once united Czechoslovakia. The Slovaks, playing in their first final, were more aggressive in the early stages but three defensive errors saw them 3-0 down in the first 12-1/2 minutes. Six minutes and four seconds into the first period, Michal Sykora fired into the top corner to finish a well-executed 2-on-1 break with Martin Prochazka. Three and a half minutes later, the Slovaks were caught on a fast break once again, Tomas Vlasak beating Jan Lasak with a backhander.Then Vlasak found Prochazka unmarked by the far post for an easy score. But Czech goalie Roman Cechmanek, named best goaltender of the tournament and near perfect in a 2-1 win over Canada in Friday's semifinals, played another spectacular game, coming up with several big saves in the second period when his team had to kill three two-minute penalties in a row. However, with Slovakia on a powerplay, Martin Strbak beat Cechmanek at 7:43 of the second period to cut the deficit to 3-1. When Jan Tomajko restored a three-goal cushion at 3:35 of the third period, beating Lasak after a set up by Jiri Dopita, the Czechs looked well on the way to their second successive world title...