Our pairs: Tomasz Włoszczyński and Mateusz Świerzewski as well as Piotr Filistyński and Przemysław Mszal took 3rd and 4th place, respectively, in the competition that began the “Wole(j) Maluch” team’s journey around Europe in a Fiat 126p.
Zbąszyń’s “Łazienki” beach welcomed the volleyball players with blazing sunshine and three excellently prepared courts. The nearby Lake Błędno provided relief from the nearly 40-degree heat several times that day. The tournament organizers took care of every detail, just as they did in their Maluch, in which they set off the next day after the competition on an 8,000-kilometre route around Europe. We encourage you to follow the journey on the Facebook profile – “Wole'j'maluch Eurotrip – 126p Around Europe”.
The Bolesławiec players set off for Zbąszyń without really knowing what to expect. Once there, it turned out that as many as 21 pairs had entered the tournament, including many active players from second- and third-league clubs. Our pairs made it through the first three stages without suffering a single defeat. In the quarterfinal, the draw pitted our players against one another. BTS Bolesławiec seniors Mateusz Świerzewski and Tomek Włoszczyński faced talented juniors Przemek Mszal and Piotrek Filistyński. The scenario from the previous week’s tournament final in Bolesławiec was repeated. After a hard-fought match, the seniors won. While Tomek and Mateusz waited for the semifinal, Piotrek and Przemek still had one more chance to reach the “final four” – the tournament was played using the Brazilian system, meaning that only a second defeat eliminated a team. The juniors made excellent use of their opportunity and fought their way into the group of the best teams in impressive style.
There was no shortage of excitement in the semifinal, after a total of nine matches had been played! Tomek and Mateusz faced the local pair Frasz/Borkowski. With their opponents leading 14:8, the match turned around: the Bolesławiec players levelled the score and fought point for point. Later in the match, they had match point at 20:19. The momentum shifted again, however, and after an exciting finish the local pair won 24:22 (matches were played to 21 points).
In the semifinal, Piotrek and Przemek faced the outright favourites to win the entire tournament: Wojciech Lis and Konrad Grześkowiak from second-league Astra Nowa Sól. The crowd was astonished when our young players were even leading 17:13! Too many degrees on the thermometer, a large number of matches played that day, a lack of energy... One might explain what happened next that way, but the reality was different. Piotrek and Przemek simply came up against exceptionally experienced players and narrowly lost the semifinal, 21:19. That meant one thing... another “brother-against-brother” match between the Bolesławiec players, this time for third place in the overall standings. Once again, the BTS seniors came out on top, although the juniors never gave up until the very end. In the final, favourites Grześkowiak/Lis defeated the Zbąszyń pair Frasz/Borkowski.
Final standings:
- Grześkowiak/Lis
- Frasz/Borkowski
- Włoszczyński/Świerzewski
- Filistyński/Mszal.
Congratulations!
More photos from the tournament on the profile of the Zbąszyń Sports, Tourism and Recreation Centre.
Tomasz Włoszczyński