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[Milica Nikolic]

The qualification stage of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup got underway today at the Omnisports venue in Montreux.

On Thursday, eight players in both the Men’s and Women’s events are competing for the final two places in the Round of 16. The qualification is played over two rounds, with the winners of the second round securing their spots in the main draw.

All matches of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup will be available live worldwide on ETTU.tv and YouTube ETTU official, except in the following countries and territories, where specific broadcast agreements apply and access is restricted (geo-blocked). In these regions, fans should follow the tournament exclusively on the official local broadcasters listed here.

In the opening round, top seed Anna HURSEY of Wales recorded a swift straight-games victory over Georgina POTA of Hungary 11-6, 11-4, 11-8 .

Annett KAUFMANN came under early pressure in her match against Lea RAKOVAC of Croatia. After narrowly losing the opening game, the German player quickly imposed her dominance and took control of the contest.

Opening round

Georgina POTA of Hungary – Anna HURSEY of Wales 0-3 (6-11, 4-11, 8-11)

Annett KAUFMANN of Germany – Lea RAKOVAC of Croatia 3-1 (9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-6)

Daniel HABESOHN of Austria – Tomislav PUCAR of Croatia

Andrej GACINA of Croatia – Iulian CHIRITA of Romania

Andreea DRAGOMAN of Romania – Izabela LUPULESKU of Serbia

Rachel MORET of Switzerland – Charlotte LUTZ of France

Joao GERALDO of Portugal – Kristian KARLSSON of Sweden

Alvaro ROBLES of Spain – Pedro OSIRO of Switzerland

The post Qualification stage opens at CCB Europe Top 16 Cup in Montreux first appeared on European table tennis union.

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[Milica Nikolic]

The list of players for the Round of 16 of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup was completed after the opening day matches at the Omnisports venue in Montreux.

Eight players in each category battled for the two remaining places that secured qualification among the top 16. In the women’s event, the successful qualifiers were Annett KAUFMANN of Germany and Charlotte LUTZ of France. In the men’s competition, Tomislav PUCAR of Croatia and Alvaro ROBLES of Spain claimed the available spots.

Anna HURSEY of Wales put Annett KAUFMANN under heavy pressure in the deciding match today. HURSEY dominated the opening game and disrupted KAUFMANN’s rhythm, but on her debut the German player kept her composure and secured her first qualification for the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup main draw.

KAUFMANN approached the round of 16 calmly after reaching her interim goal:

“For me, everything from now on is a bonus. RAKOVAC and HURSEY were strong adversaries today; those were not easy matches. That’s why I’m especially pleased that, in my Europe Top 16 debut, I managed to reach the main draw with a good performance. Let’s see how the draw turns out tomorrow. I just hope I won’t have to play against one of my four national team teammates.”

Tomislav PUCAR advanced to the main draw after overcoming Daniel HABESOHN of Austria and Iulian CHIRITA of Romania. After a very tight opening game against CHIRITA, the Croatian found his breakthrough.

“The first game was probably the most important part of the match. The opening exchanges are always difficult, but I managed to take control early. When it reached 9–9, it felt like a crucial moment, and winning that first game gave me a mental advantage. The second game was also very close, but I stayed focused and managed to close it out. After going 2–0 up, it became harder for CHIRITA to come back. I had a strong start and finished the match well. It has been another long day here,” said PUCAR.

Speaking about his duel with HABESOHN, PUCAR added:

“The first match was excellent. I lost to HABESOHN here last year, so it’s never easy to play against him. If you give him a little time, he knows how to use it and win points, so it was important to be precise and aggressive, which I managed to do today. I closed the opening two games before he managed to swing the momentum back his way. That’s table tennis — at the end of a game it often comes down to courage and a bit of luck. I handled the closing moments well. In the third game I didn’t have a big lead, he caught up with me, but I managed to turn it around. It was 9–7, and thankfully I was able to close it.”

Playing in her CCB Europe Top 16 Cup debut, Charlotte LUTZ of France defeated Izabela LUPULESKU of Serbia and Rachel MORET of Switzerland to secure her place among the top 16 players.

“I was a little stressed this morning because it was my first match at the Top 16 and I really wanted to qualify for the main draw. Despite the nerves, I managed to play very well. Even though I lost the first game, I gained confidence as the match went on and came back to win 3–1. I’m very happy with how I performed and I hope tomorrow will be even better and that I can go further in the competition,” said LUTZ.

Reflecting on her match against LUPULESKU, which also went to four games, LUTZ added:

“I had some problems at the beginning of the match and struggled with my receive. I tried to adjust immediately in the second game to regain control, and it worked well. I also focused on putting more balls on the table because my opponent plays very early, which sometimes causes me difficulties. I changed my approach and it proved effective.”

Alvaro ROBLES defeated João GERALDO of Portugal and Pedro OSIRO of Switzerland to book his place among the top 16 players at the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup.

“This morning’s match was very difficult. First of all, it’s never easy to come through qualification and reach the top 16. I had a tough match against Pedro OSIRO, it was 1–1 and very close. He was playing really well and very relaxed, but I stayed focused on turning the match in my favor. After that victory my main priority was to recover and refocus for the next match two hours later,” said ROBLES.

He added:

“I didn’t have the best feeling after the first match and needed to reset my game. I went for a walk and cleared my mind, enjoying the beautiful surroundings, and that helped me prepare again. I’m very satisfied with the result because João is a great player and I lost to him not long ago. That makes this win even more important for me, and I’m pleased to have progressed.”

Qualification round

• Annett KAUFMANN of Germany – Anna HURSEY of Wales 3-1 (7-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-8)
• Tomislav PUCAR of Croatia – Iulian CHIRITA of Romania 3-0 (10-12, 11-8, 11-3)
• Izabela LUPULESKU of Serbia – Charlotte LUTZ of France 1-3 (11-9, 9-11, 9-11, 6-11)
• Joao GERALDO of Portugal – Alvaro ROBLES of Spain 0-3 (7-11, 3-11, 5-11)

Opening round

• Georgina POTA of Hungary – Anna HURSEY of Wales 0-3 (6-11, 4-11, 8-11)
• Annett KAUFMANN of Germany – Lea RAKOVAC of Croatia 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-6)
• Daniel HABESOHN of Austria – Tomislav PUCAR of Croatia 0-3 (8-11, 11-13, 9-11)
• Andrej GACINA of Croatia – Iulian CHIRITA of Romania 1-3 (8-11, 7-11, 11-5, 9-11)
• Andreea DRAGOMAN of Romania – Izabela LUPULESKU of Serbia (9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 8-11)
• Rachel MORET of Switzerland – Charlotte LUTZ of France (5-11, 4-11, 5-11)
• Joao GERALDO of Portugal – Kristian KARLSSON of Sweden 3-2 (11-5, 13-11, 5-11, 5-11, 11-8)
• Alvaro ROBLES of Spain – Pedro OSIRO of Switzerland 3-1 (9-11, 11-5, 12-10, 11-8)

All matches of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup will be available live worldwide on ETTU.tv and YouTube ETTU official, except in the following countries and territories, where specific broadcast agreements apply and access is restricted (geo-blocked). In these regions, fans should follow the tournament exclusively on the official local broadcasters listed here.

See the pictures by Remi GROS here.

The post Qualifiers confirmed in Montreux as KAUFMANN, LUTZ, PUCAR and ROBLES reach the Round of 16 first appeared on European table tennis union.

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[Milica Nikolic]

The Mixed team events at the 2026 JOOLA Europe Youth Series in Osijek concluded with gold medals for Poland in the Under 15 category and Romania in the Under 13 competition.

You can see the pictures here.

In the Under 15 Mixed event, Poland, represented by Lucja KOBOSZ, Lena PUZIO, Hubert KWIECINSKI and Mateusz ORSZULAK, overcame Israel’s team of Gali BEZALEL, Ofek NAHUSHI, Nir ENGLER and Maor NICHANEVICH in the final.

Bronze medals were claimed by Croatia (Karla IVČIĆ, Sara RIVETTI, Nikola JURIC, Ivan SMILJANIC) and Romania (Nadalia IONASCU, Maria Alexandra STOIAN, Mihai IORDAN, Tudor SAFTOIU, David TORO).

In the Under 13 Mixed event, Romania’s Teodora SARDENI, Bianca Stefania TOMA, Denis FONARIUC and Matei NITA defeated Spain’s Julia FERNANDEZ, Carmen GOMEZ, Daniel CASQUERO and Luca ROMERO to take the title.

Bronze medals went to Poland (Hanna KUFEL, Julia SZARMACH, Milosz GROCHOLSKI, Adam KEDZIERSKI) and the combined Greece/Croatia team of Nikolaos ALEXIDIS, Theofanis MARKOULAKIS, Vilma DESPOT and Dora PAMUKLIĆ.

The post Poland and Romania celebrate Mixed team golds at JOOLA EYS Osijek first appeared on European table tennis union.

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[Milica Nikolic]

On the second day of play at the 2026 CCB Europe Top 16 Cup in the Omnisports venue in Montreux, the tournament’s biggest names entered the arena as the Round of 16 in the men’s event got underway.

All matches of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup will be available live worldwide on ETTU.tv and YouTube ETTU official, except in the following countries and territories, where specific broadcast agreements apply and access is restricted (geo-blocked). In these regions, fans should follow the tournament exclusively on the official local broadcasters listed here.

See the pictures by Remi GROS here.

Jonathan GROTH – Darko JORGIC 1–3 (14–12, 3–11, 8–11, 8–11)

Last year’s runner-up and three-time champion Darko JORGIC opened his campaign with a win over Denmark’s Jonathan GROTH. After a neck-and-neck battle in the opening game, JORGIC shifted into a higher gear and tightened his control of the match. In the fourth game, the Slovenian led 9–5, but GROTH forced a timeout at 9–8. The short break worked in JORGIC’s favor, as he regrouped and sealed the victory.

“I may have started the first game a bit too passively, waiting for Jonathan’s mistakes, and in a few rallies I was overly aggressive, going for full power. The opening round is always tough and very important, and that adds extra pressure. After that, I found my rhythm. In the second game I began to dominate with my serve, my returns improved, and my overall game became more stable. I avoided the quick mistakes I made at the beginning of the match. I’m happy with this first win. As I said, the opening rounds are always the hardest, the ice is broken and now we move forward,” said JORGIC.

The post Top seeds enter the fray on day two of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup first appeared on European table tennis union.

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[Milica Nikolic]

The second day of play at the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup in the Omnisports venue in Montreux brings together the continent’s elite 16 players in the women’s event. With the main draw underway, Europe’s top stars are set to clash in a series of high-level encounters as they battle for a place in the next stage of one of the most prestigious tournaments on the calendar.

All matches of the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup will be available live worldwide on ETTU.tv and YouTube ETTU official, except in the following countries and territories, where specific broadcast agreements apply and access is restricted (geo-blocked). In these regions, fans should follow the tournament exclusively on the official local broadcasters listed here.

See the pictures by Remi GROS here.

Maria XIAO – Elizabeta SAMARA 3-2 (8-11, 11-7, 24-22, 9-11, 11-6)

The opening two games betwen Maria XIAOof Spain and Elizabeta SAMARAof Romania were shared, and the turning point of the match came in a dramatic third game. XIAO showed nerves of steel in a tense, high-quality battle. She raced to a 9–3 lead before SAMARA fought back to come back. XIAO reached game point at 10–7, triggering a nerve-wracking finish in which opportunities shifted from one side to the other. SAMARA had several chances to close it out, but XIAO seized her moment at 23–22 and finally secured the game 24–22.

Competing in Montreux for the 16th time, SAMARA had reached the final last year, and her experience was evident. She responded in the fourth game, edging a tight contest to force a deciding set.

XIAO, however, did not lose focus. Playing with control and patience, she managed the decider well to seal the victory. On her third appearance in Montreux, the Spaniard improved on her previous results, having finished ninth on both earlier occasions.

“In the third game I think I had more than five set points. I was leading 10–7, if I remember correctly, and at that moment I felt a bit stressed because I really wanted to close the game. In the end we were both a little lucky, but I think I was slightly luckier in those final points. The key change was that I focused on relaxing my arm and simply playing my game, without thinking about the score. I just reacted to the ball and stayed in the rally. That mindset made the difference. After that, the fourth set went quite smoothly in SAMARA’s favor, and in the fifth my main priority was to keep the ball on the table, extend the rallies and avoid easy mistakes. I think that was important because Elizabeta became a bit tense and missed a few simple shots, which gave me extra confidence to finish the match,” said XIAO.

The post Thrilling start to Women’s Round of 16 at the CCB Europe Top 16 Cup first appeared on European table tennis union.

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