European players celebrated a week of achievements at the YONEX Belgian International 2023, marking some notable 'firsts' and titles after a period of drought for some of the continent's players.
The newly crowned YONEX Belgian International champions, Marcus Ellis/ Lauren Smith, continued their quests for important wins after their bronze medal win at the European Games. The top seeded duo navigated through some tough matches to clinch victory over European Championships bronze medallists Mikkel Mikkelsen and Rikke Søby with a convincing 21-18, 21-15 triumph in the final. Smith expressed her satisfaction on Instagram, stating, "Nice to be on top of the podium again after a solid week in Leuven."
Lucas Claerbout claimed his first title of the year at the Belgian International, breaking a dry spell in the European Circuit since his runner-up finish in the Estonian International in 2020 — but the Frenchman claimed an important win last year with a Super 300 title at the Syed Modi International. In the final in Leuven, Claerbout secured a win in straight games against Finland's Joakim Oldorff, triumphing 22-20 21-17.
Jesper Toft and Andreas Søndergaard achieved a milestone by securing their first International Challenge title. The Danish duo faced familiar opponents, Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard, in a closely contested match that ended with a 21-13 26-24 scoreline.
For all the results from the finals,
click here.
Next up is the ORLEN Polish International presented by VICTOR. The International Series tournament will be taking place from Thursday, September 21, to Sunday, September 24. You can catch all the action on
www.badmintoneurope.tv.