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ITALY WINS 7th CONSECUTIVE TITLE
ITALY scored their 7th consecutive victory at the European Team Championships, winning the open title before the end of the event. Thus interest in the last rounds shifted to the battle for the other medals, as well as the top six positions which corresponded to qualification to the 2007 World Championships. There was a fantastic finish as the teams in the Open series battled for the minor medals and a trip to China. At one point they were covered by only 3VP but in the end it was Ireland, silver, and Norway, bronze, who share the podium with the Champions, Italy. In the Women series, FRANCE was never in first place until the final round, when they pipedThe Netherlands at the post to win the gold medal. England prevailed over Germany for the bronze medal. FInally, in the seniors, GERMANY scored an easy victory and captured their first ever gold medal, leaving Sweden in second place and France third. The 48th European Team Championships was splendidly organized by the Polish Bridge Union in Warsaw, coinciding with celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the Polish Bridge Union. |
The 48th European Bridge Teams Championships was held in Warsaw, Poland, from 12 to 26 August 2006. It comprised three series - for Open, Women and Senior national teams. Originally held in Scheveningen, The Netherlands, in 1932, the European Bridge Team Championships became the principal competition organized by the European Bridge League for teams representing the member countries. It started as a single series competition for open teams, but in 1935, a women teams series was added. The senior series became part of the competition much later, in 1995. Nowadays, the European Team Championships are held every even-numbered year. The first European champions, back in 1932, were Austria, who also won the first women event in 1935. The first senior champions, Poland, were declared 30 years later. All in all, Italy has won most gold medals in the open series (18 against France's 8 and England's 7), while England prevails in the women (with 13 gold medals, against France's 10 and Denmark's 6), and France in the seniors (with 3 gold medals, against Poland's 2 and Denmark's 1). • For a complete list of the previous events, their venues and winners, click here. |
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