On the second day of play at the 2025 European Youth Championships in Ostrava, eight teams secured direct qualification for the Round of 16 in each event. For the remaining eight positions, teams are required to fight through the play-off matches.
In the Under 19 Boys’ Event, the top two teams in their respective groups are: France and Poland (Group A), Hungary and Austria (Group B), Slovakia and Portugal (Group C), Czechia and Spain (Group D).
Reigning Under 19 team champions from Malmö — albeit with a refreshed lineup this year — Romania, fell to Czechia in the final round of the group stage. That victory launched the host nation from third to the top of the standings in Group D.
The only remaining member of last year’s winning Romanian team, Iulian CHIRITA, lost to Štěpán BRHEL in the opening duel, paving the way for Czechia to reach the Round of 16. BRHEL then secured another crucial point by defeating Dragoș BUJOR in a five-game battle. Martin ŠIP also went the distance, ultimately overcoming Robert Alexandru ISTRATE.
“We did not expect this win, to be honest. We had to perform excellently and show something incredible to achieve it — and we did! I played the best I could, maybe even more than I expected,” said BRHEL.
“In my match with CHIRITA, I was 2-0 up, then it was 2-2. I don’t think he changed his tactic — he just started playing better. In the fifth game, it came down to mentality and a bit of luck, which I had in the end. Against BUJOR, I was really nervous because I knew I had to win, but I’d have been even more nervous if we were down 1-2. During the match, I changed my serve, and I think that helped me the most.”
Romania will face Italy in the play-off match. Italy had earlier lost to Portugal in Group D. The top-seeded team in Group C, Portugal, managed to recover from yesterday’s defeat against Slovakia to finish second in the group. Slovakia finished top despite losing to Sweden — their earlier wins against Portugal and Italy were enough to secure first place.
Hungary justified their top billing, but not without difficulty. Austria, who had already beaten Belgium and Croatia in straight matches, pushed the top seeds in Group B to the limit. Nonetheless, both teams secured their place in the Round of 16.
The key player for Hungary was Dávid SZÁNTÓSI, who overcame both Julian RZIHAUSCHEK and Petr HODINA. Lei BALÁZS lost to HODINA in the opening match but sealed the team victory by defeating RZIHAUSCHEK in the deciding match.
“To be honest, I didn’t play really well, but my teammates did. SZÁNTÓSI played exceptionally — he won two points, beating both RZIHAUSCHEK and HODINA. We were down 1-2 when SZÁNTÓSI played HODINA. He was trailing 1-2 but came back to win 3-2. That gave us a huge boost and pushed me to give my best in the deciding match. In the final game, I think I was simply more focused than RZIHAUSCHEK — that helped a lot. We had a tough group, but the most difficult match for me was against CLOSSET from Belgium,” recalled BALÁZS.
The last teams to finish group-stage play were Germany and Poland. In a fierce five-match battle, Germany triumphed over higher-ranked Poland. However, it wasn’t enough to secure second place – Poland advanced due to a better match ratio.
In the Under 15 Boys’ Event, top seeds in Groups C and D – Hungary and England, failed to secure direct passage to the Round of 16 and will now compete in the play-offs for a spot in the main draw.
Only Group A concluded according to the seeding, with Italy and Poland advancing as first and second, respectively. In Group B, Türkiye met expectations, but Sweden fell short, allowing Spain to finish second.
In Group C, Germany upset the rankings to finish first, followed by France. Meanwhile, in Group D, Portugal climbed from the bottom of the group to finish first, with Romania taking second place.
