The Germans had to fight hard against the Czech Republic in order to
qualify for the semi-final. The boys of Georg Imhof were 1-2 down after
three matches but once again they could rely on their team leader
Patrick Franziska.
The opponent in the semis will be the
Swedish squad. The Scandinavians prevailed in with 3-2 against Hungary
in spite of a flawless Daniel Kosiba, who won both singles matches for
the Magyars.
Portugal and France will fight for the other place in the final.
A Medal for the Diogo/Diogo/Diogo
In
their quarter-final match against Italy, the Portuguese were lined up
with Diogo Silva, Diogo Pinho and Diogo Carvalho. The Diogo triple pack
ousted Italy with 3-1 and can test now, how strong they really are.
The
French team with Thomas Le Breton, Victorien Le Guen and Romain Lorentz
is in a splendid shape and a real test for the Portuguese.
Anyway, both teams will not only win a medal but are also qualified for the World Team Championships in Cartagena de Indias.
Romanian Girls in Difficulties
In
the Girls’ main draw, the Romanians were in huge difficulties. Cristina
Hirici lost twice and gave the French some hope. Hirici’s team-mates
Anamaria Sebe and Camelia Postoaca ironed out the gaffs of their number
one. Postoaca won the crucial fifth match against Aurore Dessaint in
five games.
The teams from Poland (against Romania), Hungary and Germany are the other semi-finalists.
Cadet Team Events
In
the Cadet Boys’ Team event, Simon Gauzy’s France plays the Czech
Republic in the semis while Romania will challenge Hampus Söderlund’s
Sweden.
Portugal’s girls qualified for the semi-final against
Germany. The Portuguese women’s table tennis seems to make remarkable
progress as well and the Southern European countries are getting
serious opponents for the others.
Bernadette Szöcs’ Romania and Serbia will face each other in the second semi-final match.
Results and a Blog from Prague
Find more information and results on the European Youth Championships website.
ITTF
Executive Director of Education and Training, Mikael Andersson, is on
the spot in the magnificent O2 Arena in Prague. The expert for youth
table tennis writes regularly in his blog "Eleven Points".
Source: www.ittf.com
