Karen Kærgaard Nielsen of Denmark successfully defended her EYC Masters champion title for the second year in a row, while Mathias Danielsen Otting made the Easter celebration even better for the Norwegians by surprisingly winning the Masters in the Boys category.
After Doubles, Teams, and Singles events, the sixteen best male and female performers, after eighteen qualification games, advanced to the Masters category of best-of-two Match Play for the most notable medals.
GIRLS MASTERS
Gold medal - Karen Kærgaard Nielsen (Denmark)
Silver medal - Hannah Masterson (Ireland)
Bronze medals - Melissa Garcia (France) | Sofie Kærgaard Nielsen (Denmark)
On her way to the second gold medal of the EYC Masters, now two-time champion Karen Kærgaard Nielsen did not loose a single Match Play game, winning 8 games in a row. First, she faced her compatriot No. 15 seed Maja Løntoft. Although Løntoft held up close in both matches, Karen Kærgaard Nielsen won her ticket to the quarter-finals keeping a clean sheet 2-0 (203-173, 205-180).
In a quarter-finals, Karen Kærgaard Nielsen was on fire, defeating Kajsa Samuelsson of Sweeden 2-0 (269-192, 221-211) to advance to the semi-finals. In the Final Step 1 Samuelsson defeated the No. 1 seed Fiona Nadine Lindemann of Germany 0-2 (192-253, 259-279).
With only four athletes left, Karen Kærgaard Nielsen met No. 14 seed, Melissa Garcia of France. Even though the first game was a close one, Karen Kærgaard Nielsen dealt with pressure a little better in the secong to turn the game in her favor completely, advancing to the final with a 2-0 victory (196-186, 211-144).
In the final game, Karen Kærgaard Nielsen stood against No. 6 seed Hannah Masterson of Ireland, who knocked out a bunch of high performers at the EYC 2024. Nevertheless, it seemed like Karen was not disturbed by Hannah's past achievements in the Masters playoffs, as she took an early advantage and won gold with a 2-0 victory (201-188, 238-173).
BOYS MASTERS
Gold medal - Mathias Danielsen Otting (Norway)
Silver medal - Magnus Rehnquist (Denmark)
Bronze medals - Mikael Aron Vilhelmsson (Iceland) | Benjamin Kjærsgaard Kristensen (Denmark)
In FInal Step 1, soon-to-be EYC Masters champion Mathias Danielsen Otting faced No. 4 seed Kayden Lagana. Norwegian successfuly passed his first exam and advanced with a 2-0 victory (244-211, 213-178).
In the quarter-finals, later champion had no problems with the No. 7 seed Floris Dollevoet of the Netherlands, advancing with the 2-0 victory (242-196, 227-194). In the Semi-finals, Denmark's Benjamin Kjærsgaard Kristensen also fell against the NOrwegian 2-0 (234-189, 247-173).
In the final match of Boys Masters, Mathias Danielsen Otting met the No. 12 seed, Magnus Rehnquist of Denmark. Rehnquist managed to win the first game 277-246, but the next two games belonged to Mathias, who overcame his opponent 1-2 (277-246, 191-225, 211-221).
All championship activities was held from the 25th of March to the 1th of April 2024. A total of 28 European bowling federations and 168 youth athletes participate in the event. Full standings can be found here.
12 countries won medals at the European Youth Championships 2024. Denmark was the dominating force, obtaining 10 medals (2 gold, 3 silver, 5 bronze), while Sweden collected 7 (1 gold, 2 silver, 4 bronze), and Finland earned 5 (3 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze). Medals won in Doubles and Team events were counted as one.
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