You may be thinking, but isn’t the European national championship season in winter? You would be correct, the majority of the 2020 editions have already been played. However, several nations opt to have their nationals in the summer or later in the year.
Due to COVID-19, organisation has been a little more difficult, even for an internal tournament. Both Norway and Poland, however, were able to safely play out their nationals over the weekend, to the delight of their players.
Norway played out their NM Senior 2020 in Kristiansand. The singles winners were Emilie Hamang in the women’s singles and Markus Barth in the men’s singles. For more information and photos, click here.
The grandpas do it again
Meanwhile, in Białystok, Poland successfully ran their 56th Individual Polish National Championships. Here are the results:
MS - Adrian Dziółko bt Mateusz Świerczyński 21-17, 21-12
WS - Wiktoria Dąbczyńska bt Joanna Rudna 7-21, 2-5 [ret.]
MD - Przemysław Wacha/Michał Łogosz bt Adam Cwalina/Przemysław Szydłowski 21-11, 21-17
WD - Wiktoria Dąbczyńska/Aleksandra Pająk bt Olga Miksza/Magdalena Świerczyńska 21-19, 16-21, 21-18
XD - Paweł Śmiłowski/Magdalena Świerczyńska bt Robert Cybulski/Wiktoria Adamek 21-16, 21-17
For photos and videos from the championships, click here.
In men’s singles and mixed doubles, we had predictable wins from experienced Dziółko, 30, and the 2017 European Junior bronze medallists Śmiłowski and Świerczyńska. The retired veterans Wacha and Łogosz showed that they still have it in the men’s doubles. In great spirits after the match, they joked.
- We are two grandpas showing that we can still perform well on court. Even though we both have won many national titles before, the last one is always the best one. We might say that this is it now, but we will probably be back next year!
An unbelievable feeling
Despite these notable names on the podium, the eye-catching performance from the weekend was from Wiktoria Dąbczyńska, 21, who won both the women’s singles and women’s doubles with Aleksandra Pająk. It was a glimpse into the future of Polish badminton. Following this major success in her career, she shared her happiness in returning to the court.
- After seven months to return on court for the Polish nationals was an unbelievable feeling. I was very determined, excited, and grateful that I can play this tournament. I was delighted and had a lot of fun playing.
Commenting on this historic first for her, she says.
- I am very pleased and proud of the double national championship titles. It is the first time for me to win in both singles and doubles. The gold in the doubles was more satisfying that the gold in the singles, as my opponent (Joanna Rudna) had to retire from the match with an injury.
Being able to perform at this level in your first tournament back is a testament to the preparation and training during this time. In an attempt to measure her current form, she states.
- It is hard for me to assess my form after the nationals. After a tough block of training, I felt very tired, but despite this, while playing at the nationals I felt good. I have plenty of time now to further improve my form.
Wiktoria Dąbczyńska is a name certainly to track in the years to come, but planning for the immediate future is tricky, as she explains.
- Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it is challenging to plan anything, but I will be preparing myself for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualification, which will start in January.