Tournament Update
Just eight teams – four women`s and four men`s – are still competing for medals at the U20 Snow Volleyball European Championships in Karpacz. The remaining contenders include four teams from Poland, two from Ukraine, and one each from Italy and Türkiye.
Saturday brought even better weather and a larger crowd to Karpacz, a popular resort in the Karkonosze Mountains. High-stakes matches were played from early morning to determine group stage advancement. Poland 1, featuring players from SMS Spała, secured a crucial win over Poland 3 in a tie-break. Shortly after, Poland 2 (Blanka Trawińska, Małgorzata Banaś, Amelia Zagwojska, and Amelia Grzegorowska) won their first match, also advancing to the next phase.
In a dramatic turn, the Poland 3 women`s team lost their group`s top spot despite leading Moldova by five points in a tie-break, ceding first place to Poland 1. Nevertheless, all Polish women`s teams qualified from the group stage, joined by Ukraine, Moldova, and the undefeated Türkiye team. Zofia Preweda and Wiktoria Leśniewicz from Poland 1 commented, “The conditions are great, but the first matches were tough. We`re getting used to it and improving with each game. Our preparation was short but intense, but half our team has snow experience, which helped with positioning and game organization.” As group winners, they spent Saturday watching matches, awaiting their semi-final opponent.
Later, it was confirmed that Poland 1 would face Ukraine. The other women’s semi-final features Türkiye against Poland 3, who eliminated Poland 2 in straight sets in the quarterfinals. Emilia Żurawska, Maria Pietrin, and Wiktoria Surażyńska from Poland 3 shared their surprise success: “Two of us attend the same school, the third lives three hours away. Training together was hard, especially losing our fourth player to injury. It was tough initially, but we adapted to the conditions. Snow Volleyball differs greatly from Beach Volleyball, and playing with three offers more possibilities. We came without pressure or expectations, and now we`re in the semifinals!”
In the men`s seventh-place match, Poland 2 defeated Moldova, while Italy beat Armenia for seventh place in the women`s bracket.
To finish the day, two Polish men’s teams played quarterfinal matches against Türkiye and Ukraine, both providing excitement. Poland 4 (Paweł Zatoń, Damian Dudek, Szymon Wolak, and Dominik Mućka) eliminated Türkiye, while Poland 3 (Filip Gierczyński, Piotr Konatkowski, Robert Kusik, and Tymon Hadryan) were defeated by Ukraine’s first team.
The women’s semi-finals pairings are Poland 1 vs. Ukraine and Türkiye vs. Poland 3. In the men’s semi-finals, Poland 1 will play Ukraine, and Italy will face Poland 4.
The semi-finals are scheduled for Sunday, March 9, at 10:10 am. The bronze medal matches and finals will follow, with the women’s final at 2:20 pm and the men’s final at 3:00 pm.
Gideon Holt 
Torin Vale