Member Associations | 23 Mar 2023

Youth challenges experience in the Finnish Championships

Finnish table tennis championships will be played this weekend at the Ruskeasuo Sports Hall in Helsinki. All the top Finnish players participates in the tournament hosted by MBF.

In men's singles, Finnish number one player Benedek OLÁH is back after a year's break and is already seeking his 11th title. He has also another goal for the weekend.

“I want to have fun. In the doubles, the deck was mixed up a bit. I hope it will be a great weekend - at least for me. The last time I managed to win the championship title without losing a set. Now I am feeling a bit tired after the trip to Singapore but spend a couple of days in Finland before the tournament is good. I would still get to go skiing, but it seems to be missed on this trip, " Benedek said.

OLÁH gets a tough challenge from the reigning champion, Alex NAUMI of Kosken KAIKU. The youth trio, PT Espoo's Aleksi RÄSÄNEN and Arttu PIHKALA and Sam KHOSRAVI of KoKa also want to participate in the medal matches. When playing for the titles, experience is a valuable currency, so Samuli SOINE (TIP-70), Mika RÄSÄNEN and Toni SOINE (PT Espoo) and the "Pongfinity duo" Otto TENNILÄ - Miikka O'CONNOR (PT 75) also bring their own contribution to the medal fight. The top 16 in the ranking are placed directly on the 64-player main draw.

In the women's singles, Marina DONNER representing Hangö IK is considered the favourite. The youth section of Maria GIRLEA, Ramona BETZ, Aleksandra TITIEVSKAJA and Ella KELLOW - without forgetting the more experienced Jannika OKSANEN - will give the Aland native strong resistance. The best two from each of the four groups advance to the quarterfinals.

“ I am excited. I like to compete and really enjoy it when the stakes are high. The national championships are just like that,” DONNER predicts.

The matches start on Saturday at 10:00, the women's doubles championship will be played at 17:30. The final matches of the mixed doubles, men's doubles and women's and men's singles are scheduled for Sunday starting at 15:15.

Program and livestream: www.sptl.fi