PREVIEW: The ebt 2018 continues this weekend, with the first events of the season taking place in Greece, Slovakia and Spain.
Six events in six nations headline big weekend on the sand
The European Beach Tour 2018 is heating up, with six tournaments to be held over the coming weekend in Greece, Slovakia, Poland, Spain, Croatia and Switzerland.
Nine tournaments have been played so far in the current ebt season, in Germany, the Netherlands, Croatia, Poland and Switzerland. The upcoming competitions in Greece, Slovakia and Spain therefore signify the opening of the beach handball season in these countries.
Five of the tournaments will throw off on Friday: the Orionas Beach Handball Tournament in Greece, BeachBalons in Slovakia, the PGNiG Summer Superliga in Poland, the Arena1000 in Spain, and the Ivanic Open in Croatia. In Switzerland, the Copaca-Bâle Open (live streamed on handballtv.ch) will begin on Saturday. All six competitions will conclude on Sunday.
Ivanic Open matches will be streamed live on the official Croatian beach handball website, while Summer Superliga games will be streamed on the Summer Superliga’s official Facebook page. Orionas Beach Handball Tournament matches will be streamed here.
This weekend’s Summer Superliga tournament in Inowroclaw is just one of several events that comprise Poland’s premier beach handball competition, which was played for the first time in 2017 with great success. More than 30 local and international teams contested the five Summer Superliga tournaments held last summer, and there is great interest in the competition once again in 2018.
Danish and Polish sides lead the race
At this early stage of the ebt 2018, Danish side HEI Beachhandball top the men’s ranking with 703 points. Croatian teams Detono Zagreb and BHC Sesvete ranked second and third, both level on 603 points. Shotgunners Beach from Germany are fourth with 553 points, while Russian side Ekaterinodar are fifth with 435.
Polish team BHT Pyrki Poznan lead the women’s ranking, with 627 points, ahead of three Croatian sides: WBHC Kontesa Nera (603 points), Toyota MHC Dubrava (603 points) and Detono Zagreb (573 points). German team CAIPIranhas are fifth on 487 points.
CAIPIranhas had a small victory off the court this season, having won the first competition in the EHF #dontworrybeachhappy campaign. Fans have the opportunity to participate in the campaign throughout the season, with weekly competitions and monthly prizes provided by EHF outfitter Salming. Simply follow the EHF’s official beach handball channels on Facebook and Instagram to take part.
TEXT:
Courtney Gahan