The planned European Championship of 2020 has been postponed to 2021 due to the Covid situation. For a long time, it was also not clear whether a European Championship could be held at all. Thanks to the great support in advance and on site, the required safety precautions could be adhered to.
The European Championship took place as a union of Open, Master and Junior on two courses in the Czech Republic. The long and wide course Franz Ferdinand demanded a lot of strength and distance from the participants in the Open category, while on the Meadows course precision and sensitive play were more in demand.
The Swiss squad consisted of 20 athletes and was represented in 7 categories and could qualify for the European Championships with an individual spot (PDGA rating in European comparison) or a national spot (Swiss qualification system). After three rounds played, 11 athletes made the so-called cut and were able to play a final round on Saturday.
MPO
In the open category, Tony Ferro and Emile Barbe achieved a score of -18 and finished the tournament on the 27th place. Rank. Emile played a super brilliant 55 in the third round and thus achieved a rating for this round of 1054 and that at a European Championship, bravo Emile! Lukas Schär also reached the cut and finished the tournament in 37th place. Lars Jaeger played with an injury to the throwing elbow and just missed the cut.
FPO
Tabea Wallus and Mena Leuenberger also played their rounds on the Franz Ferdinand course. Tabea made the cut clearly and finally reached a finish in the top 15 in 13th. Mena fought her way to 29th place and held out until the end.
MP40+
Let’s switch to the Konopiště Meadows course. The European Master Disc Golf Championships took place there. For the MP40 category, the course should not be too long and many birdies were achieved. Alexander Kuster and Geni Odermatt made the cut and were able to go on an Ace Race again on the final day. Alex finished the tournament on the 24th place. Rank and directly in front of him placed Geni. The reigning Swiss champion Sami Baumgartner sniffed until the last laps at the cut, unfortunately could not reach it. Martin Jenny had a similar situation. He received the last-minute ticket due to his played qualification and played a good tournament result after a very short preparation time for the European Championships.
FP40+
With the silver medal of Natalie Holloköi, the delegation brings Edelmetal back to Switzerland. Natalie fought a hot battle for silver and was able to maintain the lead of two throws until after the final round, congratulations! Julia Burkhardt finished in a terrific fourth place. After the small slip-up in the third round, she was able to get up again and made the jump into the top 5, bravo! Karin Rubin reached the cut and played good disc golf in the second half of the final round. She finished the tournament in 13th place. Iris Beyeler Ferro missed the cut by one throw and is thus 17th. From the tournament. In addition to a few painful memories of the bush on track 13, Doris Rubin also takes successful moments with her and finished the tournament in 27th place. Irene Kanu has left two athletes behind and comes back to Switzerland with 29th place.
MP50
Jac Haegler has played himself on the waiting list thanks to his rating and was asked by the organizing committee to participate one month before the European Championships. Jac did not hesitate and agree for long. He played solid disc golf in the Czech Republic and showed his skills on the Meadows course. Unfortunately, the cut could not be reached very narrowly and so Jac ends the tournament in 19th place.
MP60
Gold Medal for Switzerland! Paul Francz had a tough fight with himself and his opponents for four days. He scored one less on the final day and on the decisive last track and thus won the title of European Champion 2021 MP60+! Congratulations for this terrific achievement.
MP65
Werner Kuster was the first Swiss to bring home the medal at this European Championships. He fought a tough and exciting battle for second and third place. Werner played a strong and smart disc golf and brings the bronze medal to Switzerland, congratulations! Turi Küttel experienced different emotions at the European Championships. So he started the tournament with a great round. After the less successful second round, Turi completed a solid third round and finished the tournament in 5th place.
The 2021 European Championships in the Czech Republic were a success for the Swiss delegation. We were able to perform very well as a team in an individual sport and do not have to hide in a European comparison.
Medals
7 Finland
6 Sweden
4 Germany
3 Switzerland
3 Denmark
2 Estonia
1 Norway
1 France
1 Poland
1 Slovakia
1 United Kingdom
Now it is not just a task to wait for the next European Championship. There will be changes in the tournament landscape and in the structure so that we can stay fit for the future and continue to achieve such great results. I would like to thank all the athletes for their great commitment. We would also like to thank the supporters who travelled with them and the entire organizing committee, which has mastered the COVID situation well.
Sporting greetings
from Mark Chardonnen, Team Captain
