Popov and Lovang’s victory in the final did not only win a gold medal for their nation but also the only medal for France at this championship.
Their English opponents, David Hong and Ethan Van Leeuwen, have been convincing in their side of the draw, but in the final the French overpowered them and won in straight sets; 21-14, 21-14.
Christo Popov exited in the quarter-final in men’s singles and Kenji Lovang was out after the semi-final in mixed doubles, which left the third seeded duo as France’s last chance for a medal at the 2017 European U17 Championships.
- It was a tough week for me with the injury. But the team helped me through and to win the men’s doubles was a great feeling after some tough days, Popov told Mark Phelan after the final.
The gold was never out of reach for the French who performed well in a final where they seemed more or less in control for most of the match. Local Czech TV broadcasted from the beginning of the men’s doubles final live and 90 minutes.
Denmark missed their chances for multiple titles
The following doubles finals had Danes in both against respectively England and Turkey, but in neither of them the Danes were able to win the gold.
The mixed was the only of the finals that went into three sets, but in the end the top seeded Rory Easton and Hope Warner took home the gold for England by beating Sebastian Grønbjerg and Clara Graversen; 21-11, 16-21, 21-16.
In women’s doubles, it was once again the top seeds that ended on top of the podium. Bengusi Ercetin and Zehra Erdem from Turkey powered the through in straight sets against Denmark’s Amalie Schulz and Christine Busch.
- We are very happy because we trained hard before this tournament. I’ve played many matches in the team competition, and individually in singles and doubles so I am very tired, but we became champions so it helps a lot, Zehra Erdem said to Badminton Europe.
Find all the results from the 2017 European U17 Championships finals by clicking here.