Poland and Romania won three gold medals each in the individual events at the Europe Youth Series tournament in Loutraki. Another outstanding event which was a success in terms of organization garnered a significant response from foreign countries impressed by the high level of the athletes and ultimately made its mark in history with a significantly better result than the corresponding event in 2023. It brought together 68 young players from 8 countries. The trophies in the individual event were claimed by Kacper PERKOWSKI and Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA from Poland in the Under 15 age categories and Alexandru POP and Maya Roberta MADAR from Romania in the Under 13 categories. Both countries also secured one gold medal each in the mixed doubles. The winners in the Under 15 category were Kacper PERKOWSKI / Maja LAKOMA from Poland and in the Under 13 category Alexandru POP / Kariss Yasmin SERBAN from Romania. Alongside the team event in the boys’ U15 and U13 categories PERKOWSKI and POP each won three gold medals. The president of the Greek federation Kostas PAPAGEORGIOU referred to the success of the 2nd Greek Open and announced that the country will request to organize a tournament in the Europe Youth Series next season. “This year the tournament went much better than last year and the feedback we received indicates that everyone was happy. We stated last October that we would continue year after year so that Europeans could learn from us and we could learn from the event. That is precisely what has happened now. With more participants better organization and smoother proceedings our goal is to establish this tournament at this time of the year. We haven’t yet informed the ETTU as they haven’t opened the call for interest to the countries but we will definitely seek to host the Europe Youth Tournament again ” said the president of HTTF. Istvan GYORGY one of the three coaches of Romania in Loutraki added a few words to ETTU about Romania’s successes today: “Yes indeed we performed better in the individual events than in the team events. We competed in three finals with our teams winning one of them in the boys’ Under 13 category and losing to Poland in the others. Despite this we were not dissatisfied as the Poles are consistently strong opponents and it’s significant when we win. In the individual events we performed very well losing only in one final in the girls’ Under 15.” In response to a question about POP coming from 0-2 down in sets he pointed out: “All the Romanian athletes are very strong in the psychological aspect. Also they understand very well what we want; POP and TORO even train together. What Pop achieved was very difficult but he understood perfectly what we asked him to do tactically and turned the situation around.” In the boys’ Under 15 category the first two players from Poland Kacper PERKOWSKI and Jan MRUGALA reached the final. The top seed performed better than MRUGALA (No 8) utilizing good tactics and securing victory with a 3-0 set score (11-9 12-10 11-6). English Kacper PIWOWAR and Polish Mateusz GAWLAS claimed third place. In the girls’ Under 15 final the top two favorites faced each other. Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA from Poland emerged victorious defeating Romania’s Andreea BAIASU 3-0 in sets (11-5 11-6 11-9). In the boys’ Under 13 final Romania’s Alexandru POP (No. 1 in the category) staged a remarkable comeback from 0-2 down in sets to win against Poland’s Hubert KWIECINSKI (No. 4) in a thrilling 3-2 set match. Romanian David TORO and Croatian Nikola JURIC claimed bronze medals. In the girls’ Under 13 category Maya Roberta MADAR from Romania the third favorite faced a tough challenge but emerged victorious winning 3-1 in sets against Poland’s Lena PUZIO. In the mixed doubles both Poland and Romania secured one first-place finish each with three pairs from Poland and one from Romania reaching the finals. In the Under 15 category the Polish pair Kacper PERKOWSKI / Maja LAKOMA claimed victory while in the Under 13 category Romania’s Alexandru POP / Kariss Yasmin SERBAN secured gold. David TORO / Maya Roberta MADAR from Romania and Mihai IORDAN / Maria Alexandra STOIAN also from Romania reached third place.

On the fourth day of the Europe Youth tournament in Loutraki the singles and mixed doubles events reached their final stages. In the Under 15 and Under 13 mixed doubles categories the pairs advancing to the semi-final round and securing medal positions were announced. No surprises occurred and the performance of Poland and Romania in this event was notable. Among the eight pairs only one came from outside those countries: Deni VALE from Croatia and Maja VANJO from Serbia ranked number 4 in the seeding. They advanced to the semis with two victories and will aim for further success on Sunday. Only one of the favorites failed to secure a medal position. Kacper PIWOWAR and Andreea BAIASU (from England/Romania) seeded number 3 lost in the quarter-finals 3-1 to Poland’s Mateusz GAWLAS and Natasza RUDOLF. However this outcome was not considered surprising. The final rankings will be determined on the last day of matches. The semi-finals of the mixed doubles are scheduled for today at 11:00 and 11:30 with the finals set for 14:30. In the Under 15 category the Polish pair Kacper PERKOWSKI and Maja LAKOMA along with Deni VALE and Maja VANJO from Croatia and Serbia respectively have secured spots in the semi-finals. Additionally the Polish duo Mateusz GAWLAS and Natasza RUDOLF and compatriots Jan MRUGALA and Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA are also in contention. In the Under 13 category the medalists include the Romanian pair David TORO and Maya Roberta MADAR the Polish duo Hubert KWIECINSKI and Lucja KOBOSZ and the Romanian pairs Mihai IORDAN and Maria Alexandra STOIAN and Alexandru POP and Kariss Yasmin SERBAN. In the singles events the main draws have progressed to the quarterfinals without any surprises. Greece is represented by Stella MAVROMATAKI in the girls’ category and by George KOUVELAS and Apostolos VATSAKLIS in the boys’ category. They will compete on Sunday for a spot in the semi-finals and a chance at the medals. MAVROMATAKI and KOUVELAS secured wins in the first round while VATSAKLIS advanced to the quarterfinals without facing any opposition. Today also featured the B Finals brackets consisting of matches for players eliminated in the group stages. Georgia SPANOU of Greece claimed 1st place in the Under 15 girls’ category. In the boys’ Under 13 category Romanian Mihai IORDAN emerged victorious while in the girls’ Under 13 category it was Romanian Maria Alexandra STOIAN. Croatian Oliver POLJAK clinched the top spot in the boys’ Under 15 category. The gold medal matches are scheduled for 14:30 (mixed doubles) 15:30 and 16:00 (singles).

The third day of the Europe Youth tournament in Loutraki concluded on Friday evening at the Sport Camp with thrilling team finals across four categories featuring Greece’s 3rd place in the boys’ competition electrifying atmosphere in the stands and a festive ambiance. Poland emerged as a dominant force in the event clinching three gold medals out of four finals. They secured 1st place in the boys’ Under 15 and the girls’ Under 13 and Under 15 categories. Meanwhile Romania emerged victorious in the boys’ Under 13 competition. “We are very pleased with our team’s performance. Securing three gold medals and one silver indicates that we are on the right track. Facing Romania in three finals winning two and losing one was a testament to their tough competition and the results are encouraging for us. While we respect every team defeating Romania boosts our confidence ” said one of Poland’s two national coaches in Loutraki Maciej KARMOLINSKI speaking to ETTU. When asked about his country’s remarkable progress in the youth categories he commented “I believe that Poland’s mentality has shifted in recent years. We have intensified our training efforts significantly. Players like REDZIMSKI KUBIK ZALEWSKI and now ZYWORONEK dedicate themselves to rigorous training daily. This dedication primarily explains our development.” In the “small” final Greece 1 showcased another impressive performance securing their third victory against a foreign team. Initially trailing 1-0 after Konstantinos ALEXOUDIS’s 3-1 set loss to Maxime DEGIVE they bounced back when Konstantinos FAKAROS defeated Noah GENART 3-0 in straight sets. The crucial doubles match featuring the successful right-handed/left-handed combination of ALEXOUDIS and FAKAROS sealed their victory with a 3-0 set win over DEGIVE and GENART giving them a 2-1 lead. The fourth match where FAKAROS overcame DEGIVE in a spectacular and suspenseful encounter finalized the score. Manolis ALAROUPI served as the team’s head coach with assistance from Dimitris PAPADIMITRIOU FAKAROS’s coach at AO Tatavla. Three other Greek teams secured podium positions each earning a bronze medal. Greece 2 in the Under 13 category (comprising Michalis BITCHAVAS Spyros FOUSEKIS under the technical guidance of Christos TSARSITALIDES) Greece 1 in the girls’ Under 15 (featuring Vasiliki BOULA Angela NOURE coached by Roula LABBRINIDI) and Greece 1 in the girls’ Under 13 (including Alexandra MAYRIDI Afroditi SARIKAKI coached by Konstantinos DIMITRAKOPOULOS). Croatia Belgium and Poland 1 also secured 3rd place in the competition with Belgium clinching bronze in the girls’ category and Poland 1 in the women’s competition. Belgium 1 secured the bronze medal in the boys’ competition. The awards were presented by Nikos KERASOVITIS the general director of Sport Camp in the girls’ Under 13 category; Sakis PAPATHANASIOU the deputy mayor of Sport in the Municipality of Loutraki-Perachora-Agii Theodoroi in the girls’ Under 15 category; Vlasis GEORGIOU the secretary-general of the Greek Federation in the boys’ Under 13 category; and Konstantinos PAPAGEORGIOU the president of HTTF in the boys’ Under 15 category. Details of the of the boys Under 15 final England vs Poland 0-3: Kacper PIWOWAR – Jan MRUGALA 0-3 (4-11 6-11 8-11) Abraham SELLADO – Kacper PERKOWSKI 0-3 (9-11 9-11 10-12) SELLADO / PIWOWAR – PERKOWSKI / MRUGALA 1-3 (5-11 9-11 11-5 9-11) Details of the girls’ Under 15 final Romania – Poland 1-3: Andreea BAIASU – Maja LAKOMA 2-3 (8-11 11-7 9-11 11-6 14-16) Alexandra-Maria DICU – Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA 3-2 (3-11 11-8 11-9 9-11 11-8) BAIASU / DICU – LAKOMA / RAJKOWSKA 1-3 (4-11 11-9 9-11 9-11 7-11) BAIASU – RAJKOWSKA 0-3 (3-11 10-12 4-11) Details of the boys’ Under 13 final Poland – Romania 0-3: Hubert KWIECINSKI – Alexandru POP 2-3 (11-9 4-11 8-11 11-1 7-11) Mikolaj PILCH – David TORO 1-3 (11-7 9-11 11-13 6-11) Mikolaj PILCH / KWIECINSKI – TORO / POP 1-3 (9-11 15-13 7-11 9-11) Details of the girls Under 13 final Romania – Poland 0-3: Maya Robert MADAR – Julia ZALEWSKA 2-3 (5-11 11-7 4-11 11-8 6-11) Kariss Yasmin SERBAN – Lucja KOBOSZ 0-3 (4-11 8-11 7-11) MADAR/Maria Alexandra STOIAN – KOBOSZ/ZALEWSKA 1-3 (13-11 8-11 8-11 9-11 5-11).

On the second day of the Greek Open in Loutraki the teams reached the finals to be played today. Poland emerges as a major contender with representation in all the finals. In the Boys’ Under 15 category they will vie for the gold against England. In the finals of the other three categories they will face Romania. While Poland has excelled with their teams England has achieved something remarkable with their sole representative team in this European Youth tournament winning all matches with a perfect 3-0 score. They secured five wins in the group stage and another in the semi-final making it 18-0 in matches overall. “To tell you the truth I didn’t expect to win all our games so far by 3-0. It certainly wasn’t easy because if I remember correctly we had 3-4 matches in the group that went to five sets and another one this afternoon in the semi-final doubles against Greece ” said Angello CARLO England’s national coach speaking to ETTU. CARLO coaches two of the country’s best athletes born in 2010 Kacper PIWOWAR from Peterborough and Abraham SELLADO who trains near Nottingham. Regarding the final CARLO didn’t hesitate to label Poland as favorites. “The kids showed great attitude and fighting spirit. It’s never easy playing against more experienced athletes but we managed it. Currently Poland with athletes older than ours remains the favorite. It’s going to be a great match though one we should enjoy. We’re playing for first place and we should be ready to seize the opportunities to win.” In the preliminary phase all the Greek representative teams except one completed their efforts. Greece 1 in cadets (Kostas FAKAROS Konstantinos ALEXOUDIS) made it to the semi-finals but lost 3-0 to England. They’ll compete for 3rd-4th place against Belgium 1 securing the bronze medal while three other Greek teams clinched bronze medals. On the podium will be Greece 2 in the Under 13 athletes’ team event which ranked 4th in the group (Michalis BITCHAVAS Spyros FOUSEKIS). Greece 1 in the Girls’ Under 15 team (Vasiliki BOULA Angela NOURE) also finishing 4th in the group. Bronze medals also go to Greece 1 in the Girls’ Under 13 team (Alexandra MAVRIDI Aphrodite SARIKAKI) who also placed 4th in the group. In the other categories final rankings were determined by group stages with favorites Poland and Romania not losing to other countries. Only in the Girls’ Under 13 category did Poland 2 maintain the advantage leaving Poland 1 out of the final. Bronze medals were also awarded to Croatia in Boys’ Under 15 Belgium in Girls’ Under 15 and Poland 1 in Girls’ Under 13.

On the opening day of play at the Europe Youth Series tournament in Loutraki Corinthia champions of tommorow from various parts of Europe showed their skills offering a taste of the thrilling moments to come in the 2nd Europe Youth tournament in Greece. The 3rd ETTU tournament of the year 2024 included the team event groups. Sixty-four kids from 6 countries are giving their all vying for honors with their primary goal being qualification for the final stage. Generally the top two favorites secured victories with only one exception: Poland 2 against Poland 1 in the girls’ Under 13 category. Despite starting from the 5th place in seeding the second team from Poland comprising Natasza RUDOLF and Lena PUZIO overcame Poland 1 the 2nd favorites 2-1. This result leaves Poland’s first team (Julia ZALEWSKA and Lucja KOBOSZ) out of the final despite their top position in the rankings having lost 2-1 to Romania in the evening. “We were not surprised by the victory of our second Under 13 girls’ team against the first team. We came to Greece with two equally strong teams. The four girls do not train together because they belong to different clubs but they often compete against each other ” Polish national team coach Alan WOS commented to ETTU and added: “We are participating in the Greek Open with many athletes and of course we are aiming for gold medals. I think we have a sufficient number of participations in international tournaments and through them we aim to steadily improve.” Greece currently has the 1st Pampaidon team in 2nd place in the “pool” leading to the final but faces a challenging task on Thursday. The second day of tournament features only team events. All four team finals will be held on Friday at 18:15 while the singles groups will begin at 09:00 on the same day.

Loutraki Corinthos alongside the Hellenic Table Tennis Federation eagerly welcomes talents from Europe for the second time in six months. Starting today until Sunday April 7th they will once again host the 2nd European Youth tournament which marks the 3rd event in this year’s European Union calendar. They are bringing together 68 boys and girls up to 15 years old from 8 countries and aspire to achieve an overall very good result. Already it is encouraging to note the significantly increased number of participants both athletes and countries compared to the 1st Greek Open. Consequently this year’s tournament will be held in the large venue with last year’s hall serving as the warm-up room. The gre78.tv channel on YouTube will produce the broadcasts with two live streams daily one on Table 1 for the ETTU TV platform and another on the gre78.tv channel. The program includes team singles and mixed doubles matches. Apart from the host country representatives from England Romania Poland Belgium Croatia Serbia and Cyprus will participate. Among the participants are notable names in both categories which adds significance to the competitive tests for the 31 Greeks participating. Seven tables have been placed in the hall for the matches. The team event which kicks off the schedule today at 9 am with the group stage will feature separate boys’ and girls’ teams unlike last year’s mixed teams format. Each team may consist of two male or female athletes in the lineup (corbillon system). In the boys’ singles Under 15 the top seeds include Polish player Kacper PERKOWSKI Romanian player Alexandru POP Belgian player Maxime DEGIVE and Croatian player Deni VALE. In the boys’ Under 13 singles notable participants include Romania’s Alexandru POP and David TORO Greece’s Spiros FOUSEKIS and Poland’s Hubert KWIECINSKI. In the girls’ Under 15 singles the top four favorites are Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA from Poland Andreea BAIASU from Romania Maja LAKOMA from Poland and Maja VANJO from Serbia. In the Under 13 girls’ singles: Lucja KOBOSZ and Natasza RUDOLF from Poland Romania’s Maya Roberta MADAR and Greece’s Afroditi SARIKAKI. In the boys’ and girls’ mixed doubles the top two favorites are Kacper PERKOWSKI/Maja LAKOMA and Jan MRUGALA/Katarzyna RAJKOWSKA from Poland. In the boys’ and girls’ mixed doubles David TORO/Maya Roberta MADAR and Alexandru POP/Kariss Yasmin SERBAN from Romania are among the frontrunners.