The Latvian men’s and women’s curling teams played in one game at the European Championship in Division B in Lillehammer, Norway, on Wednesday, November 24. In the first half of the day, the men’s team lost to Spain 3: 8, but in the evening the women’s team needed extra ends to beat Finland 10: 8. In the last main tournament game, it will be decided whether our national teams will enter the play-off round.
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In the penultimate subgroup match against Spain, the men’s team only managed to score in the fourth end, when opponents had already scored five (1: 5). As the game continued, the teams exchanged one point, which prevented our team from leveling the score to hope for victory. As a result, the third loss was made and entry into the play-off round is postponed to the last subgroup game with Estonia, in which it will be decided whether our national team or Estonia will win the medals. It is known that Russia and Spain have already qualified from the playoffs of our subgroup.
“We didn’t catch ice at the beginning of the game – it was much straighter than yesterday. We all played the worst game in the tournament. If they had played at a similar level as against Lithuania, the fight would have been very fierce.”
The women’s team in the second end of the game revealed the result by stealing a point for the Finns. Although Finland scored three points in the third end, our team played in the fourth (4: 3). When taking a break, the Finnish woman equalizes the result 4: 4.
The intense struggle continued in the second part of the game, when our opponents managed to steal two points in the sixth end, which is recovered by the Latvian national team in the seventh, and steals two in the eighth, achieving 8: 6 in their favor. Finland is only able to score 7: 8 in the ninth, which allows us to finish the game in the 10th end with the right of the last throw. However, the opponents are more successful and steal the point 8: 8, bringing the game to the extreme. In it, the Latvian national team is able to use the advantages of the last litter, gaining an important victory. Therefore, in the last match of the main tournament against Norway, it will be decided whether the women’s team will compete for the podium. England, Norway and Hungary have already entered the playoffs.
The women’s team will play a round tournament – nine games, determining the distribution of places in the overall standings. The four best of all 10 will continue to fight in the semifinals, with 1st place competing for 4th place and 2nd with 3rd place. The men’s team will play seven games in Division B Group B. The top three from each group will qualify for the play-off round. The first place winners of both groups will automatically advance to the semi-finals, while the A2 with B3 and A3 with B2 teams will clear the other two semi-finalists. The winners of the semi-finals in both competitions will not only compete for gold medals, but will also secure a place for their country in Division A next season, as well as a place in the World Cup qualifiers (January 17-22) in Lohia, Finland.
Composition of the Latvian women’s team: Evelīna Barone (skips), Rēzija Ieviņa, Veronika Apse, Ērika Patrīcija Bitmete, Letīcija Ieviņa, coach Iveta Staša-Šaršūne.
Composition of the Latvian men’s team: Mārtiņš Trukšāns (skips), Jānis Klīve, Aivars Avotiņš, Sandris Buholcs, Roberts Reinis Buncis.
Women’s national team schedule and results (Latvian time):
8: 6 – Slovenia
2:10 – Hungary
2:11 – Austria
6: 4 – Lithuania
5: 8 – England
10: 2 – Slovakia
10: 4 – Spain
10: 8 – Finland
/25.11./ 10:00 – Norway
Men’s national team playing schedule (Latvian time):
7: 4 – Belarus
4: 8 – Lithuania
4: 8 – Russia
7: 1 – Belgium
11: 6 – Hungary
3: 8 – Spain
/25.11./ 20:00 – Estonia
Overall rating in women’s competition:
1. England 8-7-1 Q
1. Norway 8-7-1 Q
1. Hungary 8-7-1 Q
4. Latvia 8-5-3
4. Lithuania 8-5-3
6. Austria 8-4-4
7. Spain 8-2-6
7. Slovenia 8-2-6
9. Slovakia 8-1-7
10. Finland 8-0-8
Overall rating in men’s competition in subgroup B:
1. Russia 6-6-0 Q
2. Spain 6-5-1 Q
3. Estonia 6-4-2
4. Latvia 6-3-3
5. Belgium 6-2-4
5. Hungary 6-2-4
7. Belarus 6-1-5
7. Lithuania 6-1-5
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