It’s Basketball's turn to enter the competition at the European Universities Games 2024 in Debrecen-Miskolc, joining the daily schedule alongside the Karate finals. It was also a big day in preparation for the start of five new sports competitions tomorrow for the second week.

The University Sports Hall transformed into a single tatami for the final day. The day started with the Kata tournament for both men and women, featuring individual and team events. The second half of the morning was dedicated to the Kumite tournament, which featured intense and stressful bouts in a vibrant atmosphere, especially when a Hungarian university was competing. Botond Istvan Beres from Budapest Business School (HUN) shared his experience of his first Games with EUSA: “The other competitors were better than the normal competition and the atmosphere was very, very good, especially having the chance to compete in my country. It’s handsome.”

The afternoon focused on the team competitions for both men and women, with some matches remaining very close until the end. One notable example was the women's match between Istanbul Aydin University (TUR) and the University of Pristina (KOS), where a fourth round was needed due to a tie to determine the winner of EUG2024: University of Pristina!

To conclude, Istanbul Aydin University received the prize for the most successful university in the competition. We congratulate their team, and especially their trainers.

The athletes were chasing the win, with fair play and determination. The hard work, concentration, strategy and competitive spirit have brought medals to the ones who gave their best. For the others, nothing is lost, there are the future games and championships that offer another chance to win a place on the podium.

At the same time, Basketball had its opening day as well. Teams have already started their journey in the first rounds, moving up the scale of qualification. We visited the match between the University of Lyon (FRA) and the University of Valencia (ESP), which ended with a score of 59-55 in favour of the French students, despite a comeback by the Spanish team that reduced the score considerably.

In the men’s competition, we watched the match between the University of Ljubljana (SLO) and the Turin Polytechnic (ITA), where the Slovenian team dominated the second half after a very tense first half. As Filip Petrovic explained, "I think we had to adjust to the level of this venue. We started to get into the rhythm of the games, and also, every time we play against different countries with specific playing styles, we have to adjust to that, and I think we did it well."

Meanwhile, in the GTM rooms in both cities, representatives of teams and athletes that are going to compete in Badminton and Handball, Tennis, Water Polo, and Beach Volleyball had the chance to learn more details about the rules, and regulations and to be present when the draws were made.

Tomorrow promises to be a busy and exciting day with the start of competition in these five new sports. 

For more information on the results of the matches, please see results.eusa.eu and eug2024.eu