Sports Roundup

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Ștefan Baciu, 07.02.2022, 13:45

Romanias national rugby team defeated on Saturday, with the score of 34-25, the team of Russia, in the first match of 2022 of the Rugby Europe Championship. This success also brought Romania the Kiseleff Cup, also disputed by the two countries last year, when Russia won it. Next Saturday, also in Bucharest, Romania will play against Portugal. The Rugby Europe Championship matches count towards qualification for the 2023 World Cup to be hosted by France.

This weekend saw the matches played in the European women’s handball competitions. On Sunday, in group A of the Champions League, CSM Bucharest defeated the Croatian team Podravka Koprivnica, 29-21. In the other group matches, Team Esbjerg defeated Buducnost BEMAX Podgorica 36-25 away from home, FTC-Rail Cargo Hungary ended in a draw the match with Rostov on Don 25-25, and Brest Bretagne Handball defeated Borussia Dortmund 31-25. CSM Bucharest ranks 5th in the provisional ranking, with 14 points from 12 matches and is qualified to the next phase of the competition.

In group B of the EHF European League women’s handball competition, CS Minaur Baia Mare defeated the trophy holder, the French team Les Neptunes de Nantes, 28-26, on Sunday, on home ground. In the other match of the group, the German team BBM Bietigheim won, 33 – 21, the away match against Zaglebie Lubin from Poland. Two stages ahead of the final, 1st ranked is BBM Bietigheim, with 8 points (3 matches), followed by Les Neptunes de Nantes, and Minaur Baia Mare, each with 4 points and Zaglebie Lubin, 0 points. The first two ranked teams qualify for the quarterfinals.

In group C, the home match of Măgura Cisnădie against the Russian team Lada Togliati was postponed due to several cases of Covid 19 infection in the guest team. Măgura Cisnădie is ranked 2nd, with 4 points out of 3 matches, after Herning – Ikast Handbold (Denmark), with 8 points, but ahead of Storhamar Handball Elite (Norway), 2 points out of 4 matches and Lada Togliati, 0 points out of 3 matches.

In group D of the women’s handball competition EHF European League, SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea obtained on Saturday the third consecutive victory, score 32-27, in the match with the French team Chambray Touraine Handball. In the other match of the group, the Danish team Viborg won 42 – 21 in the match with the Hungarian team Vaci NKSE. On the first places in the ranking are Viborg and SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea, both with 6 points from 3 matches, followed by Chambray Touraine Handball, with 2 points from 4 matches and Vaci NKSE, 0 points from 4 matches. (LS)