Portugal’s young table tennis stars certainly made some noise at the European Youth Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic. They brought home a solid haul of medals. On the final day alone, the team snagged one gold, one silver, and one bronze. This pushed their total medal count for the entire event to six. What an impressive showing for the up-and-coming talent.
A Star Rises: Tiago Abiodun’s Golden Run
Seventeen-year-old Tiago Abiodun was a true standout. He crowned himself European champion in the Under-19 men’s doubles. He also added a bronze medal in the singles event. Abiodun ended his championship with four podium finishes. This young athlete is already building quite the collection. He now boasts seven gold medals from youth competitions overall. Back in 2023, he won two golds and one silver in the Under-15 category. This year, besides his doubles gold, he earned a silver with the team. He also picked up two bronze medals, one in singles and another in mixed doubles.
Abiodun’s path to gold in men’s doubles was dominant. He teamed up with Romania’s Iulian Chirita. They played against fellow Romanians Dragos Bujor and Robert Aleandru Istrate in the final match. Abiodun and Chirita won convincingly, taking the match 3-0. In the semi-finals, they faced Poland’s Rafal Formela and Alan Kulczycki. They also defeated them 3-0, showing strong form throughout the tournament. However, Abiodun’s singles journey ended in the semi-finals. He faced Poland’s Marcel Blaszczyk and lost 2-4 in a tough match.
Matilde Pinto Shines in Doubles
Matilde Pinto also had a fantastic championship. She became the European vice-champion in the Under-19 women’s doubles. This silver medal added to her collection, making it two podium finishes for her. She had previously earned a bronze medal in the team event.
In the women’s doubles, Matilde Pinto partnered with Veronika Matiunina from Ukraine. They had a strong showing in the semi-finals. They beat the duo of Bianca Mei Rosu from Romania and Sara Tokic from Slovenia 3-0. The final match was a tough one. Pinto and Matiunina played against the French pair, Leana Hochart and Nina Guo Zheng. They were defeated 0-3, but still secured a valuable silver medal.
The entire Portuguese delegation is set to arrive back home on Monday. Their flight is scheduled to touch down at Sá Carneiro Airport in Porto at 11:15 AM. They bring with them a great sense of pride and a promising future for table tennis.