SLOVAK TEAMS ALREADY KNOW THEIR OPPONENTS AT THE EYOF 2022 IN BANSKÁ BYSTRICA

In Banská Bystrica, during a team leaders meeting, the competitions that will be a part of the EYOF European Youth Festival from 24 to 30 July 2022 were drawn. Technical delegates officially approved the drawing of the groups in basketball, handball, volleyball and gymnastics. The competitions will be held in total of ten sports at the EYOF.

Slovakia, as the host country, has a place in all team competitions. “We are glad that our teams will not be missing in Banská Bystrica in any of the team sports. In July, the best in European handball, volleyball and basketball in the given age categories will come to us. I strongly believe that in addition to the gained experience, our athletes will also achieve a great result,” said Marek Majerčák, the Sports Director of the EYOF 2022. 

Both Slovak handball teams will perform in the A-group. The boys led by Martin Spuchlák will play in the “A” with the Germans, Slovenes and Portuguese. The girls, led by Ľuboš Hepner will compete with their peers from Denmark, Hungary and Romania in the basic group. “For both of our selections, this is the first serious tournament on the way to gaining experience within the national team. It will be for the players born in 2005 and 2006. The girls will play in Detva, the boys have their group in Zvolen. We will see the best teams in Europe, we will have quality matches that will be a great test of our shape comparing to other countries in this age category,” said Jaroslav Holeša, the president of the Slovak Handball Association.

Both Slovak volleyball teams will meet the favorites from Italy in the basic group. The volleyball arena in Slovenská Ľupča will host a girls’ tournament in which, in addition to the Italian favorites, very strong national teams from Serbia and Slovenia will also meet in Group B. “I expect volleyball of the highest quality because, apart from Slovakia, the 7 best teams from Europe will take part in the tournament. We all hope that our national team will finish as well as possible. In the girls’ competition we have strong opponnets from Italy and Serbia, who also participated in the World championships a couple of months ago,” Marek Prokeš, the EYOF manager and technical director of the Slovak Volleyball Federation, evaluated the competition draw. The boys’ part of the tournament will be hosted by the arena in Zvolen, where, in addition to the biggest favorites from Italy, Slovak volleyball players will also meet the Germans and Bulgarians in the Group A,” Prokeš concluded.

In the basketball competitions, both Slovak teams were drawn into the group B. In the UNB basketball arena, the Slovenian, Spanish and Hungarian girls will meet the home team, while the boys will meet Lithuania, Serbia and Slovenia in the Badín basketball arena.

“Competing at the EYOF means the opportunity to play against the best teams from Europe. It will be a very valuable experience. We believe that we will not get lost in this strong competition, even if we are not among the favorites of the tournament,” said one of our basketball representatives Richard Ondruš.

In addition to team sports, the order of the competing countries on individual tools in gymnastics was also drawn. “It is important that the teams know who they are competing against. In the next three months, they can focus on preparing to fight against three specific opponents. At the same time, it is a signal to us as an organising committee that the event and preparations have moved to the final phase and in less than three months, 2,500 athletes will be fighting for precious metals and their greatest achievements in their sports careers,” Majerčák concluded.