On the final day of play at the European Teams Championships Stage 1 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 12 teams secured their place at the European Teams Championships Final, which will take place in Zadar, Croatia, from October 12th to 19th.
In the Women’s Team Event, the qualifiers are Netherlands, England, Greece, Belgium, Slovenia, and Bulgaria.
In the Men’s Team Event, the qualifiers are Greece, Spain, Netherlands, Moldova, Finland, and Türkiye.
The top-seeded teams in the Women’s Event — Netherlands, England, Greece, and Belgium — secured their spots in Zadar during the final duel of the Group Stage, leaving the defeated teams to compete in playoff matches for the two remaining positions.
The Netherlands defeated Moldova 3-1, with Shuohan MEN remaining unbeaten throughout the tournament. MEN is one of only three players in the Women’s Event to achieve this status in Sarajevo.
England overcame Slovenia 3-2, led by Tin-Tin HO, who also finished Stage 1 undefeated. Greece edged Bulgaria 3-2, with Aikaterini TOLIOU maintaining her perfect record.
Belgium defeated Switzerland, ending Swiss star Rachel MORET’s flawless run. MORET suffered her second defeat in the final match against Margo DEGRAEF.
In the playoff matches, Slovenia beat Switzerland in straight matches, whilst Bulgaria needed full five matches to overcame Moldova.
In Phase 2 of the Men’s Event, the top-seeded team, Greece, secured three consecutive wins. In their final group match, they defeated Türkiye to maintain their flawless record.
For the No. 2 seeds, Finland, the outcome was the opposite. They were defeated by Moldova, ranked 19th, in what was the biggest upset of the tournament. Vladislav URSU recorded a perfect 12 wins out of 12 matches, leading Moldova to a remarkable achievement.
Seeded No. 3, Spain also secured their place in Zadar. They were led by the event’s highest-ranked player, Alvaro ROBLES, who preserved his unbeaten status, although he participated in only two matches. In their final group match, Spain overcame Lithuania.
The clash between No. 4 seeded Norway and No. 5 seeded Netherlands concluded in favor of the lower-ranked team. The result wasn’t entirely expected. The defeat of one of the tournament’s highest-ranked players, Borgar HAUG, in the last match was a surprise. HAUG, who had previously secured nine wins, was defeated by Kas VAN OOST and Gabrielius CAMARA.
In the playoff matches, Finland beat Lithuania 3-0, while Türkiye succeeded against Norway by same margin.
See the pictures here.
