The 2025 U22 European Championship, held in Baden, concluded on Sunday with unprecedented gold medal victories for both Ukraine and France in beach volleyball. This landmark event once again highlighted the vibrant and promising future of the sport across the European continent.
The triumph of Daria Romaniuk and Yeva Serdiuk for Ukraine in the women’s competition, coupled with Téo Rotar and Arthur Canet’s victory for France on the men’s side, represents not only a historic first for each nation in this age group but also underscores their growing prominence in continental and international beach volleyball.
In the women’s event, Ukraine`s current excellent form on the continental stage was further solidified, marking their second European title in just two weeks. Earlier this month, Maryna Hladun and Tetiana Lazarenko achieved gold in the senior EuroBeachVolley. In Baden, the 21-year-old duo of Romaniuk and Serdiuk made their own history, securing the country`s inaugural U22 European Championship title. They achieved this by defeating the defending champions, Czech twin sisters Anna and Katerina Pavelková, in a decisive two-set match (21-16, 21-18) for the gold medal.
Romaniuk and Serdiuk previously demonstrated their talent by finishing fourth at the U22 European Championship last season and earning silver at the U18 EuroBeachVolley in 2021. The following season, the Ukrainian pair went on to claim gold at the FIVB U19 World Championship.
Polish duo Malgorzata Ciezkowska and Urszula Lunio, who secured silver last year, once again reached the podium this Sunday. They clinched the bronze medal after a thrilling tie-breaker victory (21-23, 22-20, 15-13) against Swiss Muriel Bossart and Leona Kernen.
Rotar and Canet Achieve Second Youth Title
The men’s final brought together two of the most accomplished teams in the tournament. In the end, the 21-year-old Téo Rotar and 20-year-old Arthur Canet emerged victorious, overcoming Latvians Kristians Fokerots and Olivers Bulgacs in straight sets (21-14, 21-18) to secure France`s first-ever title in this U22 age category.
Rotar, instrumental in France’s victory at the CEV Beach Nations Cup last year, and Canet boast a strong history in youth tournaments. Their accolades include gold medals at the U20 European Championship in 2023 and the FIVB U19 World Championship in 2021. The pair also participated in last year`s U22 European Championship, where they secured a third-place finish.
Their gold medal performance prevented Latvian sensation Fokerots from clinching continental titles across four distinct age groups. The 20-year-old blocker had previously triumphed at the U18 European Championship in 2022 and earned both U20 and senior titles last year.
The bronze medal in Baden was claimed by Austrians Tim Berger and Timo Hammarberg, who ensured the host country a spot on the podium with a convincing straight-set victory (21-18, 21-8) over Lithuanians Karolis Palubinskas and Povilas Piesina.
Looking ahead, the U20 European Championship is set to commence next week in Madrid, the Spanish capital, with matches running from Thursday through Sunday.
