Last weekend, Canarian island Gran Canaria hosted II EHF Beach Handball Champions Cup. Competition on which took part 12 teams in female and same number in the male competition, all of them champions or runners-up on the national championships.
Title holders from previous year, „Skrim Kongsberg“ (NOR) and „Ekaterinodar“ (RUS) arrived again to the beautiful island as clear favourites for defending the „crowns“.
Beautiful beach „Playa de Ingles“ and local organisers of University Gran Canaria offered to the team best possible conditions on the 2 courts event area in the middle of tipical summer crowd on the beach, as temperature during the Championship varied from 25 to 31 degree.
Spectatores that matches watched live on the courts or via fantastic Internet live stream or on host broadcast of ESP television „Teledeporte“ were able to see a magical points, saves and assistents in this dinamic sport.
In female competition, after preliminary round, „Skrim“ and „OVB“ (HUN) dominated (with score 4:1) in Group A, while „Piotrkovianin“ (POL) and „Multichem SentAndrea“ finished leaders in the Group B with the same score. Because of that, it was not surprise that all 4 won their opponent on the first next step – in the 1/4F matches.
It was different in male competition because SemiFinal reached teams that were clasified on the I and IV place in Group A („Ekaterinodar“ and „Petra Plock“ (POL)) and on the place II and III in Group B („Detono“ (CRO) and „Team Sweden“).
Semifinal matches were extremly interesting and despite that we saw just 2 „shoot out“ situation (in female final and male bronze medal matches) almost all matches were decided in just few points of difference.
Bronze medal in the female competition won „Skrim“ by winning against OVB, while in the final match Hungarian „Multichem SentAndrea“, after winning against „Skrim“ in Semifinal, beat Polish champions „Piotrkovianin“ (2:1 (18:22; 19:12; 9:8)).
Guys followed their girl colleagues and made medal matches super attractive.
„Detono“ lost against Polish champions „Petra plock“ (1:2 (20:16; 21:22; 2:6)) and „Ekaterinodar“ defended their crown, by winning against young Swedish players from „Team Sweden“ 2:0 (21:18; 15:14). Russian team won all 8 matches (just one period lost) and deserved that title as their colleagues from HUN female champs. Teams were leaded by Roman Kalasnikov, Ekaterinodar (44 points in semifinal and final!!!) and Csiki and Friebesz (SentAndrea).
PHOTO: http://grancanariabhb.com/
