Snow Volleyball
Following three days of thrilling competition, young snow volleyball athletes from Türkiye and Italy emerged victorious at the #EuroSnowVolleyU20 championships held in Karpacz, Poland. Hosts Poland earned two silver medals, while Ukraine secured bronze in both the men`s and women`s tournaments.
The newly crowned U20 Snow Volleyball European champions: Türkiye and Italy!
This event marked the second edition of the U20 Snow Volleyball European Championships. The previous year, held in Bakuriani, Georgia, saw Czechia win the women`s title with Poland taking silver and Türkiye bronze. In the men`s event last year, Poland won gold, followed by Czechia and Türkiye.
This time, the picturesque resort of Karpacz in the Karkonosze Mountains provided the setting. Favourable weather, including 15 degrees Celsius, clear skies, and sunshine, contributed to a great atmosphere. On Friday and Saturday, evening sessions at the Irena Szewińska Stadium drew enthusiastic fans who came to support the participating European teams.
In the women’s semifinals, Poland 1 defeated Ukraine. Poland 3 pushed Türkiye to a tie-break, coming close to a surprising upset and a spot in the final, but Türkiye ultimately won the decisive set to advance to the gold medal match. The men’s tournament semifinals both concluded in two sets, with Poland 1 and Italy securing their places in the final.
The bronze medal matches, for both women and men, featured matchups between Poland and Ukraine. In the women`s bronze match, Poland 3 (Emilia Żurawska, Maria Pietrin, Wiktoria Surażyńska) nearly won in two sets, but Ukraine improved their game, particularly serving, to force a tie-break. Ukraine won the tight tie-break 15-11. The Polish players, who narrowly missed a medal, commented, “We really enjoyed playing on snow and felt more confident with each match. We would definitely welcome the opportunity to play in such a tournament again.”
The young girls from Türkiye were a dominant force in the women`s competition.
Subsequently, the Ukrainian men’s team 1 (Nikita Pavliuk, Anton Tasenko, Artem Varvanin, Serhii Varvanin) mirrored their female counterparts’ success by defeating Poland 4 (Paweł Zatoń, Damian Dudek, Szymon Wolak, and Dominik Mućka) to claim the men`s bronze.
The women’s gold medal match lasted over 40 minutes. Poland’s team won the first set, but Türkiye progressively improved their serving and defence throughout the match to secure the overall victory. The players from Poland 1 (Zuzanna Rapczyńska, Paulina Łabuz, Zofia Preweda, and Wiktoria Leśniewicz) reflected, “We know we will appreciate this silver medal more later, but right now we are disappointed to have been so close to gold. Playing in Karpacz was a special experience, especially competing at home with our loved ones supporting us in the stands.”
In the men`s final, the Italian team (Laurin Zoeschg, Diego Leon Steger, Michael Stolzlechner, Luis Mairhofer) delivered a strong performance to defeat Poland 1, a team that regularly trains at SMS Spała. Despite losing their initial match in Karpacz, the Italian squad won all subsequent games to clinch the gold medal. After the match, Marcel Wanat, Michał Kucharski, Tomasz Warych, and Wiktor Musiał from the Polish team expressed, “There is some disappointment because we aimed for gold, but we are still happy and grateful for the opportunity to compete here.”
This championship marked a historic moment for Karpacz, as it was the first time the Polish city had hosted an international Snow Volleyball tournament.
Teams from Italy and Poland delivered an entertaining men`s final in Karpacz.
