Eleni Koukouma / KOE Correspondent

Cypriot athletes continue to impress at the 20th Mediterranean Games. The third day of competition brought three more medals to the Cyprus Olympic Committee delegation: a silver in canoe/kayak with Savvia Hadjicharalambous and two in shooting with Konstantia Nikolaou and Nikola Vassiliou, bringing the total tally to two silver and two bronze medals. The performances in swimming were outstanding, while the national handball team’s first-ever participation was historic, as was the first victory and qualification in padel.

In detail:

In Canoeing

Savvia Hatzicharalambous achieved the sport’s greatest distinction in canoeing and kayaking by winning the silver medal in the K1 1,500-meter individual event. She fought until the very last meter and the very last second to secure second place, with only Gidao dr. Prito of Portugal ahead of her. She left behind the two athletes from Serbia, Horvat and Stanojev, by less than half a second, with all three boats in positions 2-4 crossing the finish line very close to one another.

Shortly after the medal ceremony, the Mediterranean Games silver medalist stated the following: “My first feeling was definitely joy because this is my first medal at such a major event, and it was something I really wanted. I also felt a sense of satisfaction because I felt great during the race and I believe I gave it my all. This medal means a lot and is definitely a great motivation for me to keep going strong. Of course, the reward isn’t just the medal, but today was a reminder that all the hard work this year was worth it.”

Antonis Kyriakou and Daniel Sirotin also put in a very strong performance as they competed in the K2 5,000-meter Final, finishing in 9th place in the event. In the K1 1,000-meter third-place race, Daniel Sirotin finished first and placed 10th, while Antonis Kyriakou finished 4th and placed 13th in the event. Overall, Cyprus’s performance in canoeing at the Mediterranean Games is considered outstanding and a complete success.

In shooting, the Cypriot shooters shone, both in the men’s and women’s events. Two bronze medals from Nikola Vassiliou and Konstantia Nikolaou, plus another appearance in the final by Eleftheria Anastasiou, who—together with Sotiris Antoniou—formed an exceptional team thatearned universal applause and respect.

Konstantia Nikolaou was on the edge of her seat hoping to make it to the final after not having such a good second day, but once she got there, she found her form again and fought until the very end—even for the gold medal—ultimately settling for bronze.

It was a reversal of fortune for Anastasia Eleftheriou, who had an amazing second day and entered the final in second place. She fought for a medal but ultimately finished in 5th place.

In a similar fashion, Nikola Vassiliou secured a medal in the men’s event after a sluggish start to the day that at one point threatened to keep him out of the final. Once he secured his spot in the final, he found his stride and also took home the bronze medal. Sotiris Antoniou finished in 11th place out of a total of 16 athletes.

In swimming, the day of competition began with two significant qualifications for the finals. Kalia Antoniou qualified for the 50-meter backstroke with a time of 29.27, finishing 3rd in her heat and 7th overall. Shortly afterward, Maria Erochina secured her spot in the 200-meter breaststroke with a time of 2:30.37, placing third in her heat and fourth overall.

Kalia Antoniou and her coach decided she would withdraw from the evening’s 50-meter backstroke final in order to conserve her energy and focus on her upcoming events, where she has a strong chance of competing for a spot on the podium, particularly in the 100-meter freestyle, which will take place on Monday.

In handball, history was made with the national team’s first-ever participation in the Mediterranean Games. The national anthem rang out in Taranto, and everyone felt proud of the team’s participation. Going into the match against Algeria, it was clear from the start that there was a disparity in strength, just as there is in the other two matches to follow in the group stage against Tunisia and Greece. The final score was 33–24 for Algeria, with our team putting in a very strong performance, especially in the second half.

In fencing, in the Épée (dueling sword), Irini Mavrikio and Alexandros Taliotis put in solid performances but were unable to advance to the next round. Alexandros Taliotis had one win and four losses in the group stage, but he could have secured another victory, particularly in his first match when he lost 5-4 to the Moroccan athlete. His seeding pitted him against the Italian Filippo Armaléo in the round of 32, where there was a clear disparity in skill, and he was eliminated, ultimately finishing in 20th place in the competition.

Eirini Mavrikio got off to a great start with a 5-0 victory over the Algerian athlete, but she injured her knee, causing her to miss her subsequent ranking matches. In the round of 16, she faced an athlete from Turkey, and although she started the match well and took the lead, she ultimately lost 15-7.

The experienced fencing champion had this to say about her performance at the tournament: “In the second match, I injured my knee, and that affected me for the rest of the competition. Despite that, I advanced to the top 12 and finished in 11th place. The matches were very difficult, since the French, Italians, Spaniards, and Egyptians are here with Olympic and world champions on their teams.”

In Padel

Sergis Kyratzis and Maria Siopacha scored a huge victory over Turkey in the Mixed Doubles and advanced to the quarterfinals of the tournament. They defeated the Turkish duo of Zeynep Kocac and Toker Uncal 2-0 (6-4, 6-2) after a very strong performance.

Our tennis players faithfully followed the instructions of their coach, Pablo Bustamante, to maintain constant pressure on the Turkish player, and their strategy paid off when they broke the Turkishat 4-4 in the first set, ultimately winning it 6-4. With their spirits high, they came out very strong in the second set and, with two consecutive breaks, took an early 4-0 lead and went on to win 6-2.

This first victory in the sport at the Mediterranean Games was a vindication for the team, and especially for Sergis Kyratzis, who had struggled with the weather conditions on the first day of the men’s competition, which was the main reason they failed to advance.

Next, the doubles team will face a very difficult challenge in the quarterfinals, as they will take on the tournament’s No. 1 seed, the Portuguese duo.

In Taekwondo, Nikolas Nikolaou put in a very strong performance in the (-80) kg division, facing Italy’s Angelo Mangione. Despite losing 1-2, he showed fighting spirit and tenacity until the very end.

Nikolaou took the lead in the match by winning the first round 10-2, but the Italian then managed to turn the tide, prevailing in the next two rounds with scores of 2-6 and 2-8.

In wrestling, Charalambos Choiras faced an extremely difficult challenge against Spain’s Iglesias Ram and was never in a position to contend for a spot in the next round. The final score of 0-10 reflects the gap between the two competitors.

Sunday, August 23 / Results

PADEL

“16” Doubles (M) Maria Siopacha / Sergis Kyratzis vs. Zeynep Kocak / Toker Uncal (TUR) 2-0 (6-4, 6-2)

CANOE KAYAK / Cimino Park Mar Piccolo

Kayak 2 500m (A) Final A Antonis Kyriakou / Daniel Sirotin 1:35.61 9th place

Kayak 1 1,000 m (A) Final B Daniel Sirotin 3:59.92 1st / 10th place

Kayak 1 1,000 m (A) Final B Antonis Kyriakou 4:05.68 4th / 13th place

Kayak 1 500m (Men’s) Final A Savvia Hatzicharalambous 2:02.19 2nd SILVER MEDAL

SWIMMING / Torre d’Ayala Swimming Stadium

50m Backstroke (C) Heats: Kalia Antoniou 29.27 3rd / 2nd (7/15)

200m Breaststroke (Women) Heats Maria Erokhina 2:30.37 3rd / 1st heat (4/9)

19.48 200m Breaststroke (Women) Final: Maria Erokhina (Final) *

FENCING / Pala Ricciardi

Épée Group 2 Alexandros Taliotis vs. Elkord Houssam (MAR) 4-5

Épée Group 2 Alexandros Taliotis vs. Mari Massimo (ALB) 5-2

Épée Group 2 Alexandros Taliotis vs. Odinn Bindas (FRA) 3-5

Épée Group 2 Alexandros Taliotis vs. Valerio Cuomo (ITA) 1-5

Épée Round of 32: Alexandros Taliotis vs. Filippo Armaleo (ITA) 3–15 (2–8, 1–7)

Épée Group 3 Irini Mavrikiu vs. Rayhana Larbi Bouaouina (ALG) 5-0

Épée Group 3 Irini Mavrikiu vs. Eloise Vanryssel (FRA) 1–5

Épée Group 3 Irini Mavrikiu vs. Lucrezia Paulis (ITA) 2–5

Épée Group 3 Irini Mavrikio vs. Pinyol Tomas Daniela (ESP) 3-5

Épée “16” Irini Mavrikio vs. Aleyna Erturk (TUR) 7-15

WRESTLING / Wojtyla Sport Hall

-86 kg Charalambos Choiras vs. Ram G. Iglesias (ESP) 0-10 (0-3, 0-7)

SHOOTING / Torricella Municipal

Skeet (A) 125 Nikolas Vassiliou 117/125 6/16

Skeet (A) 125 Sotiris Antoniou 114/125 11/16

Skeet (C) 125 Anastasia Eleftheriou 118/125 2/9

Skeet (C) 125 Konstantina Nikolaou 114/125 6/9

Skeet (C) Final Konstantina Nikolaou 27/30 BRONZE MEDAL

Skeet (C) Final Anastasia Eleftheriou 19/25 5th

Skeet (A) Final Nikolas Vasiliou 28/30 BRONZE MEDAL

TAEKWONDO / Giovanni Paolo II Sport Hall

-80kg (A) Round of 16: Nicolas Nikolaou vs. Angelo Mangione (ITA) 1-2 (10-2, 2-6, 2-8)

HANDBALL

GROUP B Cyprus – Algeria 24-33 (10-17, 14-16)

Cyprus: A. Papalambrianou (50.29), C. Antoniou (9.33), L. Paraskeva (60.00, 2 goals), I. Argyrou (30.00, 5 goals), N. Karkalatos (60.00, 4 goals), C. Hatzipetrou (60.00, 1 goal), G. Kritikos (60.00, 2 goals), A. Charalambous (60.00, 5 goals), K. Bakatselos, F. Misaelidis (4 points), A. Ioannou (30.00), T. Panaretou, M. Karagiorgis, T. Makridis.