This season in the Champions League Women Etival ASRTT has emerged as the dark horse by reaching the final creating one of the top-rated upsets in the competition. The French club will now face the formidable reigning champions KTS Enea Siarkopol Tarnobrzeg with hopes of halting their mission to secure a third consecutive crown. On their journey to the final Etival ASRTT defeated Czechia’s SKST Plus Hodonin in the semis Serbia’s TTC Novi Sad in the quarters and topped their group by overcoming Austria’s Linz AG Froschberg and French ALCL TT Grand-Quevilly. Jieni SHAO Marie MIGOT and Camelia IACOB have been the driving forces behind Etival ASRTT’s European campaign this season. “Hana wasn’t playing this year due to the extremely busy schedule leading up to the Olympic Games. Despite missing MATELOVA we managed to reach the final which no one expected ” commented MIGOT. The opening match is set for Tuesday in France. “We have nothing to lose. We’ll play without pressure. We need JIENI to perform at her usual level and Cami and I will give our best ” added MIGOT. KTS Enea Siarkopol Tarnobrzeg will be without their star player HAN Ying. “Certainly that works in our favor but even without HAN they are an incredibly strong team with vast experience. They are a top club boasting world-class players. It’s up to us to try to create an upset. With our home advantage and a packed venue we’ll have the supporters on our side ” noted MIGOT. Marie promised a fierce fight saying “Camelia has lost only one match this season in the Champions League I’ve defeated two very strong players and Jieni has been consistently outstanding. We have our chances in the final and we’ll go for them. While a quick 0:3 defeat like last year is possible we’ll give our best to extend the match.” MIGOT also expressed her preference for the Men’s Champions League playing system stating “The Men’s Champions League system with the Final Four format was much better than ours this year. It’s a pity we didn’t adopt the same format.”
Donner and Vendelbo Celebrate Three Gold medals in the Veterans’ NETU Championships
Finnish player Marina DONNER and Danish player Henrik VENDELBO celebrated three championships over the weekend at the North European Table Tennis Union (NETU) Veterans’ Championships held in Helsinki. DONNER managed to achieve this impressive feat without dropping a single game. The Åland native secured gold medals in the singles for the 40-year-old category teamed up with Sweden’s Sofia WESTHOLM for the doubles and partnered with Finland’s Aki KONTALA for mixed doubles. In a thrilling final match of the 55-year-old singles VENDELBO defeated Finland’s Pasi VALASTI 3-2 (7-11 11-8 13-11 3-11 11-5). The Danish mixed doubles pair consisting of Oscar SØNDBERG from Denmark clinched the top spot alongside Lilian BIERDASZKIEWIEZ. The friendly tournament brought together over 300 enthusiasts from the sport from seven different countries to the Finnish capital over three days. Participants represented age groups ranging from 40-year-olds to those over 90. The junior championships for the NETU region will be decided in June in Norway. All results and pictures of the winners can be found on the website of the Finnish Table Tennis Association. Link to the Finnish Table Tennis Association’s website
KTS Enea Siarkopol Tarnobrzeg Aims for Third Consecutive Champions League Title
KTS Enea Siarkopol Tarnobrzeg the reigning Champions League Women’s champions are geared up and motivated as they travel to France to face Etival ASRTT in the opening leg of the final on Tuesday. With two consecutive titles under their belt they are eyeing a historic third in a row. Their journey to the final has been impressive overcoming strong opponents along the way. They defeated Austria’s Linz AG Froschberg in the semi-finals Italian ASD Quattro Mori in the quarters and topped their group by defeating TT Joué les Tours and TTC Novi Sad. However their path to the final has not been without challenges. They faced a tough blow before the quarters when HAN Ying had to take a break due to surgery. Meanwhile Elizabeta SAMARA and FU Yu competed in the ITTF World Cup Macao 2024 last week and Xiaoxin YANG is gearing up for Olympic qualifications. Coach Zbigniew NĘCEK expressed his feelings ahead of the final saying “We are thrilled to be in the final especially after HAN Ying’s injury. We believe in our chances but due to our players’ demanding schedules including preparations for the Olympics and WTT tournaments our preparation has been compromised. Eliza SAMARA and FU Yu will be fatigued. While our opponents have fewer such players we’re up for the challenge. We are highly motivated aiming to win for HAN Ying. We know our opponents well and anticipate a tough match in France especially with a packed arena of spectators.” Despite the challenges KTS Enea Siarkopol Tarnobrzeg remains at the top of the national standings with just two matches left before the playoffs.
SH-ITB Budaörsi Sport Club Triumphs in Spain
The Hungarian SH-ITB Budaörsi Sport Club clinched a victory in the opening leg of the Europe Cup women’s tournament. Despite playing on their home turf at Museo De La Almendra Francisco Morales in Spain the home team failed to capitalize on their advantage. “The team did a perfect job today but it’s not over yet. We must focus on the Saturday match. It’s very important for all of us to win this title ” emphasized Georgina POTA reflecting on the team’s performance. The match turned out to be much closer than the result predicts with two closely contested encounters concluding after five games each. Georgina POTA secured a crucial 6-3 victory over Meng JIAQI in the deciding game. Meanwhile Patricia SANTOS came agonizingly close to winning her duel against Dora MADARASZ narrowly losing by a death point. “I am very happy with this result. My first match was very difficult mentally but I am overjoyed I could manage to win my second match especially after how she played against Pota in the first match ” expressed Dora MADARASZ. The return leg is set to take place on April 27th. This year marks the 21st appearance of the Hungarian club in European competitions and they have their sights set on clinching their 6th medal in European competition. Museo De La Almendra Francisco Morales – SH-ITB Budaörsi Sport Club 1-3 Meng JIAQI – Georgina POTA 2-3 (11-5 9-11 6-11 11-8 3-6) Patricia SANTOS – Dora MADARASZ 2-3 (5-11 7-11 12-10 11-7 5-6) Marija GALONJA – Maria FAZEKAS 3-0 (11-7 12-10 11-6) Meng JIAQI – Dora MADARASZ 0-3 (9-11 8-11 7-11)
Veterans’ NETU brings over 300 players to Helsinki
North European Table Tennis Union (NETU) Veterans’ Championships will be held on April 19th-21st at Ruskeasuo Sports Hall in Helsinki. The event will bring together over 300 experienced table tennis enthusiasts from seven different countries. For three days the medals will be determined in the age groups ranging from 40 to 90 years old in the singles doubles and as well in the mixed doubles. All the necessary information can be found here.
Budaörsi Sport Club Gears Up for Europe Cup Final Opening Leg Against Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales in Spain
On Friday the Budaörsi Sport Club from Hungary will travel to Spain to face Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales in the opening leg of the Europe Cup final. The clash promises to be a thrilling encounter as both teams vie for European glory. Since 2003 Budaörsi Sport Club has been a stalwart representative of Budaörs its loyal supporters and Hungarian table tennis on the European club stage. This year marks their 21st appearance and they are aiming for their 6th European Cup medal. Their previous accolades include a bronze in the Champions League in 2012 silver in 2013 bronze in the ETTU Cup in 2019 silver in the Europe Cup in 2021 and another silver in 2023. The women’s team of Budaörsi Sport Club celebrating its centenary this year has a golden opportunity to clinch the European Cup title following their impressive run to the finals this year and last. President Gergely SOMLYÓ expressed his pride stating “Table tennis has been the most successful sport in our club and city. I am immensely proud of our achievements. Winning now would be a fantastic gift for our club’s 100th anniversary.” In national competitions the team is advancing to the Final Four and currently leads the standings with just two matches remaining. This year amidst Olympic preparations managing club events has been challenging especially with two players Dóra MADARÁSZ and Georgina PÓTA vying for spots in the Paris Olympics. For Gina this would mark her 5th Olympics an incredible feat. Georgina PÓTA shared her thoughts saying “It’s a stressful time as I’m competing for the Olympics and participating in important club events like the Europe Cup. I may not know much about the Spanish team but I’ll gather all necessary information from my teammates and coach.” Dóra MADARÁSZ reflected on her past experiences “I’ve played in Spain before but the team has changed since then. We’ve discussed our expectations and prepared as much as possible. Winning the Europe Cup would be a dream come true. We’re all eager for the finals highly motivated to win yet we respect our strong opponents.”
Sarajevo is set to Host European Olympic Singles Qualification with 90 Players Vying for Paris 2024 Spots
Sarajevo Bosnia-Herzegovina is set to host the 2024 European Olympic Singles Qualification from 15th to 19th May. A total of 90 players have confirmed their participation comprising 44 women and 46 men. Of the six continental quotas allocated to Europe five will be determined through this tournament while the sixth will be decided based on rankings as of 11th June 2024. Seeding and Group Distribution Players will be seeded based on the ITTF World Rankings from week 20 which will be published on 14th May 2024. In the Women’s Event the 44 players will be divided into 12 groups: eight groups of four players and four groups of three players. Players from the same National Olympic Committee (NOC) will be placed in different groups. The top two finishers from each group will advance to Stage 2 where 24 players will compete. Similarly in the Men’s Event the 46 players will be split into 12 groups: ten groups of four players and two groups of three players. As with the women’s event players from the same NOC will be distributed across different groups. The top two from each group will move on to Stage 2. Competition Format Both the Men’s and Women’s Singles events will follow the same format from Stage 2 onwards. Stage 2 will feature a direct knockout draw spanning four rounds taking place on Friday 17th and Saturday 18th May in the morning. The finalists from Stage 2 will automatically secure spots at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games with no final match played. Stage 3 will consist of five rounds of knockout matches. This stage will feature players who did not qualify from Stage 2. The two finalists from Stage 3 along with the winner of the match between the semi-final losers will also earn places at the Paris Olympics. Again no final match will be played. Stage 3 matches are scheduled for Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th May. Please see the System of play Entries list and Schedule here
Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales Plays Dream Season
Spanish club Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales will host SH-ITB Budaörsi Sport Club in the opening leg of the Europe Cup Women’s final to be played on Friday. “We are looking forward to our duel. All the girls are ready and we are aware it is going to be a very difficult match. The Hungarian team is composed of very experienced players. It is a club that comes from the Champions League and carries great experience of playing in top competitions. On the other side this final is our club’s best result so far ” said Maria GALONJA. Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales is enjoying a dream season this year. Besides reaching the ultimate stage of the European club competition they are currently in second place in the Spanish league. “The Europe Cup final is new for us and we are aware of the enormous challenge but I believe we could win. I really think it is going to be a close game and I have faith in my team. This is our greatest season and it will be wonderful to close it with the trophy ” stated GALONJA. On their way to the ultimate stage in the semi-finals the Spanish club overcame Romania’s SM Constanta; in the quarterfinals they defeated another Spanish side UCAM Cartagena TM and in the Round of 16 Poland’s Czestochowa Bebetto AZS UJD. Additionally Museo De la Almendra Francisco Morales had to navigate two group stages. In the first they prevailed against both Turkish TIGEM SPOR KULUBÜ and Portugal’s Uniao Sebastianense F.C. In the second group stage they succeeded against Romania’s CSM Constanta and Greece’s Panathinaikos.
Mixed doubles from Spain and Sweden secured their places in Paris
After the World Mixed Doubles Olympic Qualification in Havirov four pairings secured their places in Paris 2024. On the second day of play Spain’s Alvaro ROBLES and Maria XIAO and Kristian KARLSSON and Christina KALLBERG of Sweden progressed to the Olympic Games. They joined RI Jong Sik and KIM Kum Yong of Korea along with WONG Chun Ting and DOO Hoi Kem of Hong Kong who succeeded on the opening day. KARLSSON and KALLBERG overcame Slovakia’s Lubomir PISTEJ and Barbora BALAZOVA in the final. They also secured victories against Zhe Yu Clarence CHEW and Jian ZENG of Singapore and Phakpoom SANGUANSIN and Orawan PARANANG of Thailand. In the final today ROBLES and XIAO prevailed against Romania’s Ovidiu IONESCU and Bernadette SZOCS. Previously on their way to the ultimate stage they eliminated Samuel KULCZYCKI and Zuzanna WIELGOS of Poland and Moldova’s Vladislav URSU and Alexandra CHIRIACOVA.
Korea’s and Hong Kong’s pairings secured two tickets for Paris
After the first day of play at the World Mixed Doubles Table Tennis Olympic Qualification in Havirov RI Jong Sik and KIM Kum Yong of Korea along with WONG Chun Ting and DOO Hoi Kem of Hong Kong secured their places in the Olympic tournament in Paris 2024. On their way to victory in their respective draw RI Jong Sik and KIM Kum Yong overcame Alvaro ROBLES and Maria XIAO of Spain in the ultimate hurdle. Previously they defeated Hungary’s Nandor ECSEKI and Dora MADARASZ India’s Sathiyan GNANASEKARAN and Manika BATRA as well as Lubomir PISTEJ and Barbora BALAZOVA of Slovakia. In the second bracket WONG and DOO overcame Luka MLADENOVIC and Xia Lian NI of Luxembourg in the final. In other matches they eliminated Kristian KARLSSON and Christina KALLBERG of Sweden Samuel KULCZYCKI and Zuzanna WIELGOS of Poland. The remaining 24 pairs will return to the tables tomorrow for another round of competition. Seeded based on their performances from the previous day the teams will be divided into two knockout brackets once again. The winners of these brackets will clinch the remaining two Olympic quotas from the World Mixed Doubles Olympic Qualifiers cementing their places in Paris.
