146 top players from 39 Tennis Europe member nations are in Parma, Italy, to participate in the European 16 & Under Championships from 23-29 September.
The unique format sees four clubs - TC Parma, TC President, Circolo del Castellazzo & Sporting Club Parma - co-host the opening rounds, with action moving exclusively to TC President from Thursday onwards.
The event has seen 13 former world #1 singles players and 14 former doubles world #1s among its past champions, with some of the biggest names in professional tennis - such as Carlos Alcaraz, Iga Swiatek and Holger Rune - claiming titles in recent years. The boys’ and girls’ singles champions will automatically qualify to compete at the elite season-ending Tennis Europe Junior Masters tournament in Monte-Carlo from 22-26 October.
👇 Scroll down for the latest news
ℹ️Draws, Results & Information
🔗 Boys Singles | Boys Doubles | Bonus Draw
🔗 Girls Singles | Girls Doubles | Bonus Draw
🔗 Order of Play | Fact Sheet | 📷 Photo Gallery (© Adelchi Fioriti/FITP)
📺Live Streaming/Live Scores
For live match streaming from Court 1, see below. | Court 2 | Live Scores
📢Latest News - Day 4
26.09.2024 - 19:30 - QUARTERFINAL LINE-UP COMPLETE
After this morning’s mass exodus of top seeds, others were able to live up to their seeding and put a stop the carnage in the afternoon session.
Third seed Jan Sadzik (POL) saw off Hungary’s Marcel Kovaks for the loss of five games and will face Austrian Thilo Behrmann in tomorrow’s quarterfinals.
Although she’s unseeded, last year‘s 14&U European junior champion Luna Vujovic is making strides this year, going a little under the radar and moving deftly into the quarterfinals. The Serbian has defeated Tegan Bush of Great Britain in straight sets 6-3 6-3.
Number eight seed Michelle Khomich from Germany had a tough three set tussle, but eventually overcame Maja Pawelska from Poland 3-6 6-4 7-6(4).
In the remaining battles of the unseeded singles players, the results were as follows:
Boys
Ferdinand Livet Novkirichka (FRA) d. Gabriel Niedermeyr (AUT) 6-1 6-3
Christopher Thies (GER, pictured) d. Eudald González (ESP) 7-5 3-6 6-4
Girls
Fabiola Marino (ITA) d. Alja Senica (SLO) 7-6(5) 6-2
Emily Victoria Eigelsbach (GER) d. Sarina Schnyder (SUI) 4-6 7-6(2) 6-4
That rounds out the singles, and in the afternoon/evening doubles session, the following teams scored wins to advance to tomorrow’s semi finals (2 matches still pending)
Boys
Mark Becirovic Novak/Ziga Sesko (SLO)
Hryhorii Kartavenko/Dmytro Vterkovskyi (UKR)
Girls
Maia Burcescu/Giulia Popa (ROU)
Noelia Manta/Sarina Schnyder (SUI)
Charo Esquiva/Mireia Sagrista (ESP)
Carla Giambelli/Fabiola Marino (ITA)
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26.09.2024 - 14:30 - TOP SEEDS EXIT COMPETITION
Flynn Thomas, the top seed, is currently Europe’s – in fact the world’s, top-ranked 16 year old, at #1 in the Tennis Europe rankings and #30 on the ITF World Tennis Tour (Juniors). However, today wasn’t his day to maintain dominance. Facing Kaan Isik Kosaner of Türkiye, Thomas easily secured the first set 6-0. But in a surprising turn of events, Kosaner responded by taking the second set with the same scoreline, 6-0. The final set was far more competitive, but Kosaner managed to pull ahead, securing a 0-6 6-0 6-4 victory.
Over at Club Parma, it wasn’t smooth sailing for Charo Esquiva Bañuls either. The top seed struggled against Sweden’s Tiana Tian Deng, who managed to upset the Spaniard with a 7-6 6-0 win.
The upsets continued as fifth seed Mark Ceban lost a hard-fought battle against Tito Chavez. After dropping the first set 5-7, Ceban led 5-4 in the second and was close to pushing the match into a third set. However, Chavez fought back, ultimately claiming victory 7-5 7-5.
Meanwhile, fourth seed Gonçalo da Rosa Castro (POR), who leads the Race to Monte-Carlo Rankings, was defeated by 13th seed Ziga Sesko (SLO). Sesko triumphed with the unexpected score of 6-0 6-2.
Other results:
Boys Singles
(2) Yannick Theodor Alexandrescou (ROU) d. (16) Nand Vandepoele (BEL) 6-0 6-1
(6) Thilo Behrmann (AUT) d. (9) Daniel Jade (FRA) 6-2 6-2
Girls Singles
Antonia Stoyanov (NED) d. (5) Giulia Safina Popa (ROU) 6-4 6-1
(7) Carla Giambelli (ITA) d. Beti Butina Jazbec (SLO) 6-0 7-5
Sona Depesova (SLO) d. Noelia Manta (SUI) 6-4 4-6 6-4
26.09.2024 - 09:00 - READY FOR ACTION
As the sun starts to peek out in Parma, players are preparing to take the court, ready to give their best in hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals. With each match, the competition gets tougher, and everyone is eager to make their mark.
Until they begin, take a moment to check out the updated gallery, where we’ve added more photos of yesterday's action. The full schedule for today is also available via the links above.
Day 3
25.09.2024 - 19:40 - ALL EYES ON THIES!
The event continues to deliver surprises and unexpected results. One of the biggest shocks came from Germany's Cristopher Thies, who stunned eighth seed Mark Becirovic Novak of Slovenia, a top contender in the Race to Monte Carlo rankings. Thies dominated the match, securing an impressive 6-0 6-0 victory.
Switzerland’s Noelia Manta also caused an upset, defeating 14th seed Iva Lakic (MNE) 6-2 7-6. Emily Victoria Eigelsbach of Germany added to the day's surprises by knocking out 15th seed Katerina Oustampasidou (GRE) 6-4 6-1. Meanwhile, the top seeds comfortably moved on to the next round. Flynn Thomas (SUI) overcame Nik Denotte (BEL) 6-3 6-2, while Charo Esquiza Bañuls (ESP) cruised past Anastasiia Sorska (UKR) 6-3 6-2.
The doubles competition was no exception to the day's surprises, with several upsets and most encounters finishing in a match tiebreak. Ukraine’s 16th-seeded duo, Polina Kuznietsova and Anastasiia Sorska, staged a comeback to defeat the #4 Dutch pair of Fleur De Bresser and Antonia Stoyanov 3-6 6-2 10-8. Meanwhile, unseeded French team Seda Baslilar and Daphnee Mpetshi Perricard eliminated #8 seeds Sofie Hettlerova and Veronika Sekerova (CZE) 6-1 2-6 10-7. In the boys' doubles, Bulgarians Dimitar Kisimov and Aleksandar Tolev triumphed over the 14th-seeded Cypriot pair Achilleas Makris and Alecos Timini 4-6 6-3 10-6.
The schedule for tomorrow is now available here.
25.09.2024 - 15:50 - EJCs: CRADLE OF LEGENDS
As we did at the 14 and 18 & Under events, let’s take a quick look at how influential the players of the 16 & Under tournament have turned out to be over the years. Former champions have gone on to amass 30 Grand Slam titles, the most recent of which is Carlos Alcaraz, whose currently tally stands at 1 European 16&U title (2018, he won't be winning any more) and four Grand Slams.
25.09.2024 - 12:20 - SCHNYDER OUSTS THIRD SEED BURCESCU
There are some significant results from the first matches on Day 3.
Switzerland’s Sarina Schnyder scored an impressive win over third seed Maria Ilinca Burcescu (ROU), her 6-3 7-5 victory being undoubtedly the morning’s biggest upset.
Luna Vujovic won the battle of 2023 European 14 & Under Champions, singles over doubles, with a straightforward 70 minute 6-2 6-3 victory over sixth seed Greta Nemcsek (HUN). The Serb next plays either Tegan Bush (GBR) or Kamilla Cernousova (LAT), who are currently warming up.
Poland’s #7 seed Jan Urbanski was forced to retire while trailing 2-6 1-4 to Gabriel Niedermayr of Austria. Niedermayr’s compatriot Thilo Behrmann followed him into the last 16 with a 6-2 6-3 win over Rihards Neimanis (LAT).
Behrmann next plays last year’s 14 & Under Junior Masters champion Daniel Jade, who survived a scrappy second set to beat Ivon Jovanovic (CRO) 6-2 7-6. Meanwhile, the current 16 & Under Race to Masters leader Goncalo da Rosa Castro was impressive against Italy’s Mattia Cappellari 6-4 6-2.
25.09.2024 - 08:50 - DAY 3 PREVIEW
Good morning from Parma, where the sun is shining, the courts are prepared and we’re ready for a third day of European Championship action. Matches begin at 09:30, when you can stream two show courts at the link above. There are some intriguing match-ups in store today…our pics for match of the day?
We’re keen to see the battle between last year’s 14 & Under singles and doubles champions, Luna Vujovic (SRB) and Greta Nemscek (HUN). Now ranked 35 and 24 at 16 & Under, the two have taken quite different paths since the EJCs last year, with Vujovic reappearing on the TE Junior Tour for the first time here, while Nemscek already has a couple of important 16 & Under titles under her belt this year.
On the boys’s side we’re curious about the battle between Victor Ryden (SWE) and second seed Yannick Alexandrescou (ROU). The Romanian leads their head to head 2-1 (3-2 if you include doubles), but lost their most recent singles match. That was two summers ago though, so this will be a good test of the progress of both players.
Catch the full schedule here.
Day 2
24.09.2024 - 21:35 - READY FOR DAY 3...
With play complete for the day, our photo gallery has been updated with dozens of shots of today's best action, including this pic of Raffaele Ciurnelli (ITA).
Play begins tomorrow morning at 09:30, and you check out the full schedule here.
24.09.2024 - 19:15 - PERRICARD & HETTLEROVA UPSET IN OPENING MATCHES
France’s second seed Daphnee Mpetshi Perricard became the biggest name to fall so far, ousted in three sets by Alja Senica. Ranked just #146, the Slovenian edged a colossal tussle which lasted just one minute under three hours. Interestingly, the pair will also face each in other in doubles tomorrow.
Also out is fourth seed Sofie Hettlerova of Czechia. Isabel Skoog of Sweden (pictured) won a three set battle for a second day in row. Yesterday she won twelve games in a row after dropping the first set 6-1. Today she won the first set 6-1 but went on to have a much tougher battle, eventually winning the third 7-5 after two and half hours of play. The Swede later teamed with Tiana Tian Deng for a 2-6 7-5 10-8 win over Poles Pawelska & Maja Wrobel in the doubles, and will no doubt be heading for this ice bath this evening.
In contrast, Spain’s Eudald Gonzalez is clearly in no mood to mess around this week. He today upset 10th seeded Luka Ceramilac (SRB) 6-1 6-0 and has now lost just one game in two singles matches.
Dmytro Vterkovskyi of Ukraine fought back from the brink of defeat to outlast 12th seeded Cezar Bentzel, the biggest upset of the boys draw today. The Romanian looked to be in control, winning the first set 6-4, but once Vterkovskyi wrested the second set on a tie-break there was no looking back, and the Ukrainian booked his place in the third round against Spain’s Tito Chavez.
Check the day's full results so far here.
24.09.2024 - 14:15 - TOP SEEDS ADVANCE
Both top seeds made a flying to start to their campaigns today, with both Flynn Thomas (SUI) and Charo Esquiza Bañuls (ESP) winning in straight sets.
Thomas is the world’s top ranked 16 & Under player, and looked confident in a 6-2 6-2 win over the promising Italian, Raffaele Ciurnelli, who earlier this year won one of the Junior Tour’s most prestigious 16 & Under events, the Internazionale d’Italia in Rome.
On the girls' side, Charo Esquiza Bañuls (pictured) returned to Parma with a point to prove. After last year’s quarterfinal upset, she’s determined to go further this time — possibly all the way to the gold.
Although the top seeds advanced smoothly, yesterday’s trend of upsets continues. Portugal’s Salvador Monteiro defeated Italy’s Francesco Pansecchi, the 15th seed, in a surprise victory 6-31 6-3. Meanwhile, Czech Tomas Krejci, last year’s gold medalist in doubles at the 14 & Under European Junior Championships, had a 6-4 6-4 win over 11th-seeded Marko Savija of Serbia.
Other results so far:
Boys Singles
(2) Yannick Alexandrescou (ROU) d. Aren Baybars (TUR) 6-3 6-1
(3) Jan Sadzik (POL) d. Omer Shamian 6-1 6-3
(5) Mark Ceban (GBR) d. Knut Andersch 6-3 7-5
(6) Thilo Behrmann (AUT) d. Leon Sloboda (SVK) 6-2 6-0
(13) Ziga Sesko (SLO) d. Ken Ink (EST) 6-0 6-1
(16) Nand Vandepoele (BEL) d. Amir Skrrijelj (BIH) 6-1 6-1
Girls Singles
(5) Giulia Safina Popa (ROU) d. Polina Kuznietsova (UKR) 6-1 6-0
(11) Antonia Stoyanov (NED) d. Lana Virc (SRB) 6-0 6-1
24.09.2024 - 10:15 - TOP SEEDS IN ACTION
There’s much to look forward to on Day 2, as all top seeds step into action. After witnessing some surprising upsets on the opening day, they’ll undoubtedly be eager to avoid a similar fate and assert their dominance early on. Matches will begin at 11 AM across the four tennis clubs in Parma, with a full schedule of exciting tennis ahead.
Check the links above for the order of play and come back at 11 for the live streaming.
Day 1
23.09.2024 - 20:45 - FIRST SEEDS SCATTER - DAY 1 SUMMARY
As Day 1 play concludes, here’s the link to the complete results so far from Parma.
The girls’ draw has already seen its first upsets: Tegan Bush of Great Britain lost just three games in beating 10th seeded Cypriot Nina Andonicou 6-3 6-0, #12 seed Eleonora Toneva of Bulgaria fought hard against France’s Seda Balilar before losing 6-1 6-7 6-1. And 9th seeded Italian Ilary Pistola will be disappointed to be out of the girls’ singles. Despite firing to a 6-3 first set lead, she was outlasted as Maja Pawelska (POL) snatched the second set on a tie break before eventually winning 3-6 7-6 7-5.
Some other notable results to remark on: the 2023 girls’s 14&U singles champion Luna Vujovic, and the boys’ doubles champions Tomas Jrejci & Jakub Kusy advanced in straight sets. Leonardo Ljubicic & Lenny Petit (pictured) put in a good day for Monaco, winning both their singles matches and then combining for a doubles victory, all in straight sets.
The most exciting match of the day saw 8th seeded Czechs Sofie Hettlerova & Veronika Sekerkova edge Romy Fohnen & Celine Weynen (BEL) 6-3 3-6 15-13. Sekerkova, a silver medallist in doubles in Most two years ago, had earlier lost a marathon singles battle 2-6 6-4 6-3 to Beti Butina Jazbec (SLO).
Play in Parma begins tomorrow at 11am, the order of play can be found here.
23.09.2024 - 15:40 - RAIN STOPS PLAY...BUT NOT COMPLETELY
It's raining in Parma, so unfortunately there's no live coverage on streaming at the moment. Some matches have been moved indoors though, so not all action has been halted.
Meanwhile, many national federations have been sharing pics of their teams at yesterday's opening ceremony on social media. We've added the complete line-up to our photo gallery, courtesy of Adelchi Fioriti/FITP. Take a look, and find your national team. Just shading the completely made-up award for 'Smiliest Team' is Great Britain, pictured below.
23.09.2024 - 13:15 - 'LOVE' IS IN THE AIR
It’s been a busy opening morning in Parma, with mixed results for the two home boys in action. Antonio Marigliano was on the receiving end of a bruising 6-0 6-0 loss to Eudald Gonzalez (ESP). Vurtually simultaneously, his compatriot Raffaele Ciurnelli beat Azerbaijan’s Tamerlan Karimov by the same score.
6-0 6-0 has been a common scoreline, with four matches ending in ‘double bagels’ so far. Five, if you count Isabel Skoog’s emphatic comeback in the girl’s singles, recovering from the loss of the first set to beat Anna Mattle (AUT) 1-6 6-0 6-0
Other results from this morning:
Boys:
Riehards Neimanis (LAT) d. Pablo Carrascosa (AND) 6-0 6-0
Knut Anderesch (SWE) d. Rati Beriashvili (GEO) 6-0 6-0
Leonardo Ljubicic (MON) d. Alecos Timini (CYP) 6-4 6-4
Oliver Majdandzic (GER) d. Snir Morag (ISR) 6-0 6-4
Olaf Zielinski (LUX) d. Lucas Eriksson (FIN) 6-7 7-6 6-2
Girls:
Ana Petkovic (CRO) d. Nita Skhiladze (GEO) 6-1 6-1
Emma Tuominen (FIN) d. Luca Kalman (HUN) 4-6 6-3 6-3
Greta Nemcsek (HUN) d. Milla Kotamaeki (GRE) 6-2 2-6 6-0
Kamilla Cenrousova (LAT) d. Mia Spirovska (MKD) 6-2 6-1
Emily Eigelbasch (GER) d. Nikolina Kovacevic (BIH) 6-1 6-2
23.09.2024 - 09:20 - READY..? PLAY!
As the curtain raises on the 2024 European 16 & Under Championships, today’s extensive schedule sees mainly first round singles and doubles matches.
Most seeds enter the singles competition tomorrow following a bye in the first round, though a few – including Italian 9th seed Ilary Pistola (pictured, in action at the Summer Cups finals a few weeks ago) – will take to the courts today.
A word of caution about the weather; some rain is expected to disrupt play this afternoon. But the forecast for the rest of the week is much more optimistic, with ideal playing conditions ahead.
Preview
22.09.2024 - 18:00 - LOOKING AHEAD...
A third and final week of European Junior Championship action begins on Monday morning, with a strong field assembled in Parma, Italy, for the 16 & Under event. It’s the second time that the city has hosted the event, with a unique format seeing early round matches played across four of the city’s clubs.
Flynn Thomas is back as top seed in the boys’ singles. Switzerland’s #1 will be hungry for singles gold after winning the doubles title last year.
Daniel Jade of France also makes a welcome return to the Tennis Europe Junior Tour. Winner of the Junior Masters in Monte-Carlo last year, and silver medallist at the 14 & Under Championships in Most, he’s been making waves on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors this year, with two titles already under his belt.
Race to Monte-Carlo leader Goncalo da Rosa Castro of Portugal is seeded fourth and will be looking to consolidate his position as the battle for spots at the Junior Masters reaches its final stages.
Italy fields a strong boys’ squad including Matteo Capellari – winner of three 16 & under titles in 2023, Franceso Pansecchi – doubles champion and singles runner up in Milan this year, Antonio Marigliano – playing in Parma for a second year, and Raffaele Ciurnelli – singles and doubles champion at the Category 1 Internazionali D’Italia, played alongside the ATP & WTA event in Rome in May.
The girls’ top seed is Charo Esquiva Bañuls of Spain, who fell just short of a medal last year, losing in the quarter finals to eventual runner-up Mia Pohankova. Daphnee Mpetshi Perricard of France is seeded #2. She’s also making a second visit to Parma, having reached the fourth round last year.
Fifth seeded Giulia Safina Popa won a silver and a bronze medal at last year’s 14 & Under championships and will be looking to improve on Romania’s impressive haul of medals this year. Luna Vujovic of Serbia is another contender to go deep in the draw, and is the reigning European 14 & Under champion.
Carla Giambelli (seeded #7) and Ilary Pistola (#9) are the host nation’s top players. Pistola will be looking to repeat her previous successes on home soil, the most recent of which was a win at the Internazionali D’Italia in Rome.
The event officially kicked off on Sunday evening with an opening ceremony and a session of the Junior School, hosted by Tennis Europe's Manager of Junior Tennis, Stephanie Kamberi. The Junior School aims to prepare players for life as professional athletes, and is the only educational programme to be endorsed by the International Tennis Federation and the professional tours, the ATP and WTA.
