Hana MATELOVA of Czechia and Barbora BALAZOVA of Slovakia clinched their first-ever medal together at the Continental Championships. At the LIEBHERR European Championships in Linz MATELOVA and BALAZOVA triumphed over reigning champions Sofia POLCANOVA of Austria and Bernadette SZOCS of Romania. The bronze medals went to Izabela LUPULESKU and Sabina SURJAN of Serbia and Natalia BAJOR of Poland and Tatiana KUKULKOVA of Slovakia.
In her third European final BALAZOVA made history by securing Slovakia’s first European title. After losing the mixed doubles finals in 2013 and 2020 she finally claimed victory. For MATELOVA it marked her second European title and a significant win for Czechia having previously won the mixed doubles title in 2013 (ironically against BALAZOVA).
The final was intense but the Czech-Slovak pairing always seemed one step ahead.
“This was our best match here. Even we were impressed with our performance in the final. We had never won a medal before at the Europeans and we’ve been playing together since 2011 in Herning. For sure the experience of playing finals was on their side. POLCANOVA especially since she knows how to handle the pressure of the final stage having been there three times before ” MATELOVA said.
Sometimes experience can also be a burden making it harder to carry.
“They were nervous especially in the opening games while we were more relaxed. Before the match we just said ‘Let’s fight and see what happens.’ We stuck to our game plan ” added MATELOVA.
BALAZOVA shared her thoughts about her nerves before the match.
“Five minutes before the match I told Hana that I was nervous but she calmed me down. Even if we lost we had already achieved a lot by winning a silver medal. So I just wanted to give my best without feeling the pressure of the result. We had a rocky path throughout the entire tournament with a really tough draw. From round one it was challenging. Also we weren’t sure if this would be our last European Championship so we just wanted one medal to say goodbye. But to win gold—it’s unbelievable.”
Reflecting on their challenging path MATELOVA added “The first match was the hardest. We faced Charlotte LUTZ and Jia Nan YUAN of France. It couldn’t have been a tougher start but we managed to beat them 3-0. Strangely my defeat in singles helped me focus entirely on doubles and I had plenty of rest between matches allowing me to prepare in peace. Yesterday’s match against Natalia BAJOR and Tatiana KUKULKOVA was also incredibly difficult. They had a 2-0 lead and two match points ” MATELOVA recalled.
BALAZOVA also shared a personal anecdote: “After I lost in singles to LUTZ without much of a chance my fiancé told me ‘Maybe it’s for the best because you might become the European champion in doubles.’ That idea stuck in my mind and I thought about it before the final. For me the toughest match was the quarterfinal against BERGSTROM and KALLBERG when we finally secured our medal.”
Women’s Doubles final:
Sofia POLCANOVA Bernadette SZOCS (Austria Romania) – Hana MATELOVA Barbora BALAZOVA (Czechia Slovakia) 2-3 (7-11 11-7 9-11 11-7 6-11)
Semi final
Sofia POLCANOVA Bernadette SZOCS (Austria Romania) – Izabela LUPULESKU Sabina SURJAN (Serbia) 3-2 (10-12 11-4 11-5 5-11 11-3)
Natalia BAJOR Tatiana KUKULKOVA (Poland Slovakia) – Hana MATELOVA Barbora BALAZOVA (Czechia Slovakia) 2-3 (11-8 11-5 12-14 5-11 11-13)
