Candela Arcos gets them in doubles and María de La O Pérez in individual, in an appointment in which both attended as members of the Spanish National Team
From October 2 to 4, the Corredoria Arena Pavilion in Oviedo (Asturias) hosted a new edition of the IBERDROLA Spanish Junior International badminton. The tournament, belonging to the European circuit, is usually held in the first third of the year. However, the initial wave of Covid-19 forced it to be postponed. Now it has been possible to dispute with the logical security measures. Candela Arcos and María de La O Moreno attended as members of the Spanish National Team and have returned with a harvest of three silver medals: two for Candela and one for La O. Both formed at the Rute Badminton Club, their progression as players has made them taken by different paths. Even so, dates like this, allow them to play again for the same colors.
The first medal fell to Candela, now settled until recently in Asturias. She got it in mixed doubles, along with her usual partner, Pelayo Pinto from Oviedo. The pair progressed in the field until reaching the final, where they only yielded to the Arjonilleros Álvaro Rumín and Carla Moyano. Candela and Pelayo presented them with a very close match. But in the end, the Jaén took the victory by winning by a double 23-21.
In women’s doubles, she repeated as runner-up, along with her partner Laura Álvarez. In this way, the couple, who started as the second favorite of the table, fulfilled the forecasts. Her progression in the box was immaculate, reaching the final without giving up any set. However, the seeds 1, Lucía Rodríguez and Ania Setién, belonging to the Galicia CTD, did not give them a choice and defeated them 17-21 and 13-21. Thus, Arcos obtained her second silver medal.
In women’s individual, La O, now in CB Granada, brushed the title after completing a great weekend in that modality. The Rutian, showing a great game, was leaving rivals on the way to stand in the semifinals, where she beat the Alicante Nikol Carulla in a three-set duel. In the final, local Laura Álvarez started hitting first, 11-21, although Pérez was able to equalize the contest by taking the second set 21-14. In the third and final game, the Asturian was more decisive in the decisive moments and closed the match 14-21.
Despite the final disappointment, the result does not tarnish the meritorious runner-up of Salvador Franco’s pupil. Similarly, although this international may have been somewhat decaffeinated by the absences caused by the coronavirus crisis, the performance of the Rutian players is commendable. After this appointment, both will be selected by the national team for the Junior European Championships, to be held in Finland at the end of the month.
