We’re finally here. It is time for the 2013 IBSA Goalball European Championships Men & Women A to start!
 
Day one is the start of the round robin phase of the tournament.
 
The first day of competition has already thrown up some interesting matches. On the mens side Paralympic champion Finland is featuring in two of the most interesting matches. They take on the Czech Republic early in the day. The Czechs are a team on the rise. They have had a lot of success at their warm up tournaments and recently defeated the Finnish team in the final of the West Flemish Cup held in Belgium.
After this difficult start, they then need to face Paralympic bronze medalists and host nation Turkey. The Turks will be out to shine in front of their home crowd but they are taking on a team that don’t mind being in the spotlight.
 
Defending women’s champion, Denmark, doesn’t have an easy start. They begin by taking on the home favourites. The Turkish women’s team is a team enjoying a rapid rise to the top and who bring a lot of youth to the court.
Two other matches to look out for both feature the Finnish team. One is against their arch rivals, Sweden. It was Sweden that defeated them in the bronze medal play off in London last year. However, Sweden is coming with a new team. Later in the day, Finland then has to battle the team from Great Britain. This match has the potential to be an exciting match. Both of these nations are very professional and it should be a good challenge.
 
The full game schedule can be found at the top of the article along with the official booklet.
 
Where can you find results?
You can start with the official website http://www.ibsagoalballeacturkey.com/index.html.
For those who prefer social media, you can follow the tournament at www.facebook.com/2013ibsagoalballeuropeanchampionships.
If you prefer Twitter, there is www.twitter.com/goalballchamps. The official hash tag for the tournament is #2013EurosA.
Finally, you can also come back to this website daily for a review article on that day’s action.
 
 
All we can say now is let the games begin and let’s hope for an exciting day one.