The international tournament for young players part of the ETTU Europe Youth Series got underway today Wednesday 25/10 in Loutraki Korinthia featuring mixed teams in the U13 and U15 categories.
After the first two rounds of the team competition Denmark and Greece 1 lead with 2 wins each. In each category there are four entries and the top two teams from the groups will compete for the gold medal on Thursday at 16:30 GMT. The Greek Open organized by the Greek federation with ETTU support will run until Saturday 28/10. It marks a significant moment for the Greek federation as it hosts a European junior tournament for the first time since the 1987 European Youth Championships. Despite the limited participation the event holds great importance.
The most important aspect is that all the young players have the opportunity to participate in a good number of matches and they have started their efforts with high spirits.
In the U13 category Greece 1 has established a strong position at the top. The team consisting of John KOUTRA John KIOSELOGLOU Vasiliki BOULA and Alexandra BITCHAVA secured two victories both with a score of 7-2 accumulating 14 points. They will face Georgia next and prepare for the final. Greece 2 with Kostas FAKAROS Theofanis-Giorgos MITKAS Stella MAVROMAMATAKI and Angela NOURE lost to Greece 1 in the morning and narrowly lost 5-4 to Georgia in the late afternoon.
While the hopes for qualification remain for Greece 2 they will need a convincing win over Denmark tomorrow.
In the standings Greece 1 leads with 14 points followed by Georgia with 9 points Denmark with 7 points and Greece 2 with 6 points.
“We are very happy because this is the first time a European tournament for younger age groups is being held in Greece. We are doubly happy because the tournament is taking place in Loutraki very close to the local Poseidon club where my brother Panagiotis and I work. The two athletes of Greece 1 in the U15 the locals KOUTRA and KIOSELOGLOU have emerged ” emphasized Greece 1 coach Christos TSARSITALIDIS. He added “Apart from the two boys from the host city it’s of special importance that both girls come from the region. BOULA is from Chios and BITCHAVA is from Patras. We started off very well with two 7-2 victories. We showed higher quality and efficiency. On Thursday we aim for another win in the group and ultimately the top spot in the final.”
Today’s results in the U15:
Greece 1 – Greece 2 7-2
Georgia – Denmark 4-5
Greece 1 – Denmark 7-2
Georgia – Greece 2 5-4
Denmark had a successful first day in the U13 team event with victories. They faced two teams from the host country defeating Greece 2 with a score of 7-2 in the morning and narrowly defeating Greece 1 with a score of 5-4 in the afternoon. They are leading with 12 points and have virtually secured the top spot. The second-place team in the single group will be determined with a clash between Greece 1 (Konstantinos ALEXOUDIS Spyros FOUSEKIS Anna-Fanouria MITKA Sophia FILI) and Greece 2 (Dimitris GEORGALLIDIS Nikos ANGELIDIS Despina DEMETRIOU Aphrodite-Ioanna SARIKAKI) who are tied with 10 points. Greece 3 (with Anastasios FOUSEKIS Konstantinos ISAAKIDIS Athanasia GOGA Elpida TASIOU) is in the fourth position with 4 points and will conclude their effort in the third round.
Today’s results in the U13:
Denmark – Greece 2 7-2
Greece 1 – Greece 3 6-3
Denmark – Greece 1 5-4
Greece 2 – Greece 3 8-1
