He came across someone stronger than him. In Saarbrücken (Germany), Toma Junior Popov will not win a gold medal at the European Championship, after his exploit in the semi-finals. Beaten on Sunday by the Dane Anders Antonsen (21-18, 21-13), the 25-year-old Frenchman had qualified for the 2024 Olympics in the previous round by eliminating the world No. 1 and reigning Olympic champion, the Dane Viktor Axelsen .
Third at the European Games in 2023, the eldest of the Popov siblings – his brother Christo is 20th in the world in singles – had a heroic match against Axelsen by winning 21-9 in the last set. A prestigious victory which confirms his progress in singles: he reached the final of the Spanish Masters at the end of March. The 25th in the world is on a good start a few months before Paris.
Second continental coronation for Antonsen
Antonsen confirms his status. Best European on the world circuit this year (7th on the World Tour before this Championship), he adds a second European gold medal to his collection after a first singles title in 2021. Winner of the Malaysia Open and that of Indonesia this year, the Dane is heading to Paris as one of the contenders for a medal.
2024-04-14 17:38:26
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