Magnus Eliasson has been drawn against No.3 seed Nicolas Lenggenhager in the first round of the GRAWE sidebyside 14. Austrian Open.
The four-time Austrian Open champion is making his much-anticipated racketlon comeback in Graz in 2020’s final tournament.
Christine Seehofer begins her title defence against Sona Konigsmarkova. The world No.1 is looking to become only the second player in racketlon history after Jesper Ratzer to win 100 consecutive singles matches and currently sits on 97.
Eliasson to meet Lenggenhager while top seed Schopf takes on Patzelt
World no.7 Emanuel Schopf is the top seed at this unique tournament. He opens against fellow Austrian Philipp Patzelt and could face either Martin Abrami or David Ersil in the second round.
Schopf is joined in the top half by No.3 seed Sylvain Ternon. The Frenchman opens against top junior Florian Harca, who won the Men’s C Singles and Juniors U16 at this tournament last year. The winner of that will face either Marcel Weigl or Anthony Duthuille.
Bernhard Pilsz is the highest seed in the bottom half of the draw and he takes on Morocco’s Mohammed Tarik Koubaa. The winner of that is guaranteed to play an Austrian as Stephan Schmutzer and Michael Moitzi collide.
Lenggenhager and Eliasson are also in the bottom half of the draw. The victor from that blockbuster match will meet either Austria’s Georg Stoisser or Afghanistan’s Ahmad Jafari in the quarter-finals.
A full analysis and preview of the Men’s Singles draw will be coming later in the week.
Christine Seehofer chasing history in Graz while Bugl and Meissl ready for showdown
This is a potentially historic week for Christine Seehofer as she chases racketlon history. The Austrian has drawn Czech newcomer Sona Konigsmarkova as she chases 100 consecutive racketlon wins.
If she comes through her first-round match then she will face either Martina Nost or Negin Saremi.
The standout match of the first round is undeniably in the bottom half of the draw. No.2 seed Bettina Bugl takes on her fellow countrywoman Martina Meissl in a clash between two of the FIR World Tour’s most experienced players.
The final contest in the Women’s Singles draw pitches Myriam Enmer, a newcomer on the international circuit, against Afghanistan’s Shaghyegh Tabatabaie. The winner of that match will take on either Bugl or Meissl.
A full analysis and preview of the Women’s Singles draw will be coming later in the week.
The draw for the GRAWE sidebyside 14. Austrian Open was conducted on Tuesday morning by Marcel Weigl and is available to watch here.
The GRAWE sidebyside 14. Austrian Open will take place from Friday 20th to Sunday 22nd November. The full schedule for the week has already been released and the entire tournament will also be available to watch around the world on livestream.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
Image Credit / Henry K C WU