The start of the European Under 13 Championships in Kosta brought joy to the hosts after a thrilling match against Luxembourg. Sweden recovered from a 0–2 deficit to win 3–2. See the pictures here In the opening duel, Luxembourg’s pair Noah VALENTE and Kinda MOSTAFA overcame Zac HALLÉN and Esther WARENFELDT 3–1, before Nora CATTAZZO widened the gap with a straight-games win over Leah TULEFALT. Joel ISAKSSON turned the tide of the match with a convincing 3–0 win against Mattis GOEDERT, but the biggest battle came in the clash between Esther WARENFELDT and Kinda MOSTAFA. After a 3–2 victory, Sweden leveled the score. Noah VALENTE then sealed the match for Luxembourg with a 3–1 win over Zac HALLÉN. “We had a tough start and were down 0–2 in matches, but the players kept fighting for every point and eventually we managed to turn the match around. I’m very happy with the players’ performance,” said coach Gilles FORZY. What’s important in close matches like these? “For us, it is definitely about keeping positive energy and team spirit, where we push each other forward. Of course, it’s nerve-racking to play the first match in a European Championship, especially in front of a home crowd, but the players helped each other to become more relaxed as the match went on,” added coach Joel SVENSSON. You showed great spirit on the bench during the match, is that something you discussed before the tournament? “We are not surprised that the players show such strong team spirit as they always do, but we are of course proud that they step up for each other and support their teammates when they face difficult situations. In team events, that can make a big difference,” concluded Gilles FORZY. In the opening round, Ukraine stretched Bulgaria to all five matches before Bulgaria finally prevailed. Romania beat England, Spain overcame Montenegro, Czechia defeated the Netherlands, and Croatia outplayed Estonia, all by 5–0. PHOTO: Manfred Schillings Poland made a strong start. Ignacy SLAWINSKI, Julia Szarmach, Olaf GLANERT and Nicol BARTOSZKO overcame Belgium’s Sam VANDENBULCKE, Temperance TANG, Lilou DANTINNE and Julian DEDEKEN, before defeating top seeds Slovakia. Slovakia was represented by Gilip NAGY, Bianka BACSOVA, Vivien MURKOVA and Juraj de MIGUEL. “We are feeling strong and very focused on every match. We work a lot on specific parts of the game to be more effective, and we learn from each mistake. In this tournament we don’t set goals based on results, but rather focus on preparing as well as possible for every match and enjoying the game,” said coach Zbigniew GRZESLAK.
European Under 13 Championships Kick Off in Kosta
The European Under 13 Championships commenced today in Kosta, Sweden (24–28 September), bringing together teams from more than 30 countries. The event features both mixed team and individual competitions. The top seed in the Boys’ Singles is Ladimir MAYOROV, Europe’s current number one. MAYOROV secured bronze at last year’s edition and impressed with quarterfinal runs in both singles and mixed doubles at this summer’s European Youth Championships in Ostrava. Second seed is Bulgaria’s Stefan BONCHEV, followed by Spain’s Alexander MALOV, ranked third in Europe. Other notable seeds include Filip NAGY (Slovakia), Simon ZSIGMOND (Hungary), and Joel ISAKSSON (Sweden), the latter ranked seventh in Europe and already experienced from last year’s edition and the 2025 Youth Series. Completing the top ten are Louis FEGERL (Austria), Pietro CAMPAGNA (Italy), Dimitar DIMITROV (England), and Mihai IORDAN (Romania). At the top of the Girls’ Singles seedings is Hungary’s Zsófia FEGYVER, ranked second in Europe. She is followed by Slovakia’s Barbora Melisa GUASSARDO (No. 3 in Europe), Switzerland’s Enya HU, and Czechia’s Adela BRHELOVA, who reached the Round of 16 at the Under 15 European Youth Championships. Romania has two strong contenders in Kariss Yasmin SERBAN and Nadalia IONASCU, seeded fifth and sixth. Rounding out the top ten are Michelle WU (Switzerland), Ela Su YÖNTER (Turkey), and French representatives Albane ROCHUT and Lisa ZHAO. In the Mixed Teams competition, Slovakia, Romania, and Spain headline the top seeds. Slovakia’s squad features Barbora Melisa GUASSARDO, Bianka BACSOVÁ, Vivien MURKOVÁ, Filip NAGY, Juraj DE MIGUEL, and Denis VECEREK. Romania is represented by Kariss Yasmin SERBAN, Nadalia IONASCU, Bianca Stefania TOMA, Mihai IORDAN, Albert Armand CZIGLER, and Matei NITA. Spain fields Aina CASANOVAS, Carmen GOMEZ, Celia VALPUESTA, Ladimir MAYOROV, Alexander MALOV, and Marcos GOMEZ. Hosts Sweden are seeded 14th, represented by Leah TULEFALT, Esther WARENFELDT, Saga BLANCK, Joel ISAKSSON, Zac HALLÉN, and Filip AROSELL. Each national team is composed of two boys and two girls. Ties are contested over five rubbers, beginning with mixed doubles and followed by alternating singles matches. All matches are played in full, ensuring every player gains maximum exposure and competitive experience. The group stage divides delegations into pools of three or four teams. The top two advance to the A final stage to battle for medals, while the others continue in the B final stage to determine classification. At the 2024 edition in Bucharest, Turkey’s Gorkem OCAL captured the boys’ crown ahead of Germany’s Lukas WANG, while Sweden’s Siri BENJEGÅRD defeated France’s Eva LAM for the girls’ title. Germany triumphed in the mixed team event against Spain, and OCAL paired with Ela Su YÖNTER to secure mixed doubles gold for Turkey.
