Other Events | 11 Sep 2017

Several Paralympic champions will compete in Lasko

A total of 296 players will play at the 2017 European Para Table Tennis Championships (26 September – 5 October)

 

The Slovenian town of Lasko will host the 2017 European Para Table Tennis Championships (26 September – 5 October 2017) with a total of 296 players in 11 classes in both, men`s and women`s events. The Championships will be organized by the NPC Slovenia under the auspices and authority of the Slovenian Table Tennis Association and International Table Tennis Federation (Para Table Tennis Division).

 

Several current Paralympic champions will compete at the the2017 European Para Table Tennis Championships. One of them is Great Britain`s Robert DAVIES, gold medalist from the 2016 Rio Paralympics in Men`s Class 1.

 

Men`s Class 2 will gather all three players from the Rio`s podium: gold medalist Fabien LAMIRAULT (France), silver Rafal CZUPER (Poland) and Jiri SUCHANEK (Czech Republic). Favorites in Class 3 should be Germany`s Thomas SCHMIDBERGER (silver in Rio 2016) and France`s Florian MERRIEN (bronze).

 

Turkey`s Abdullah OZTURK targets one more gold in the Class 4, after his triumph at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, but the same goal has France`s Maxime THOMAS who took bronze last year in Brazil.

 

Two medalist from the last year`s Paralympics are considered as favorites in the Class 5. They are Germany`s Valentin BAUS and Serbia`s Mitar PALIKUCA. Actual Paralympic Class 6 finalist, Peter ROSENMEIER from Denmark and Alvaro VALERA from Spain, are determined to confirm their results from Rio.

 

Lasko will see also Great Britain`s William BAYLEY who won gold in Class 7, beating Brazilian Israel Pereira STROH in the final.

 

All European medalists in Rio, from Classes 8, 9, 10 and 11 will compete in Slovenia, except Gerben LAST (Netherlands, Class 9). They are: Andras CSONKA (Hungary, Class 8), Piotr GRUDZIEN (Poland, Class 8), Laurens DEVOS (Belgium, Class 9), Mohamed Amine KALEM (Italy, Class 9), Patryk CHOJNOWSKI (Poland, Class 10), Krisztian GARDOS (Austria, Class 10), Florian VAN ACKER (Belgium, Class 11) and Peter PALOS (Hungary, Class 11).

 

Poland`s Natalya PARTIKA is the biggest star in the Women`s events, as five times Paralympic champion, Team silver medalist at the 2009 European Championships and Doubles bronze medalist at the 2008 European Championships. She took two gold at the 2016 Rio Paralympic, becoming champion in Singles (Class 10) and Team event (Class 6-10).

 

Beside PARTYKA, four more actual women`s Paralympic champion are going to play in Lasko: Borislava PERIC-RANKOVIC (Serbia, Class 4), Kelly VAN ZON (Netherlands, Class 7) and Natalya KOSMINA (Ukraine, Class 11).