Leon Griffiths and Calum Reid lifted the Men’s Doubles world title in Prague while Stine Jacobsen and Zuzana Severinová triumphed in the Women’s Doubles.
That win sees Calum Reid add a third elite world title to his collection that includes a Men’s Singles and Mixed Doubles. It also makes him the first player in racketlon history to have won an elite world championship title in three different decades.
It’s a first senior elite world title for both Severinová and Griffiths, after both won a number of juniors crowns.
For Stine Jacobsen, it’s the continuation of a mesmerising year that saw her crowned the World Singles Champion last month in Switzerland.
Men’s Doubles – Griffiths & Reid Defeat Kainulainen & Mustonen
The Men’s Doubles final ended up being dominated by the British pair Leon Griffiths and Calum Reid. They went into the match knowing that the squash would be a tough ask so maximised their success over the first two sports.
Controlling the pace, Griffiths and Reid ran through the table tennis, winning 21-7 to open up a soul-crushing 14 point lead before badminton. They didn’t stop there, though. Their Finnish opponents – Pekka Kainulainen and Henrik Mustonen – initially raced to a 4-1 lead on the badminton court but it unravelled from there.
Griffiths and Reid wrestled control of the set to win 21-8 and extend that lead to 27 points. As expected, squash was where the pendulum swing in Kainulainen and Mustonen’s favour.
It’s been a huge battle to get points off of Henrik Mustonen and Calum Reid also struggled. He managed just one which gave the Fins a 21-12 victory, cutting the lead to 18 points.
The way Griffiths and Reid have been playing tennis though, that is nothing for them. They rolled to the points that they needed with ease, to confirm themselves as the Men’s Doubles champions.
It was a historic moment, as they became the first British players to win the prestigious crown. Reid also revealed that he was wearing the same shorts that he wore when he won 10 years ago in the World Singles Championship. The most successful shorts in racketlon history?
Kresten Hougaard and Morten Jaksland completed the podium after Cornelius Radermacher and Duncan Stahl were forced to retire due to injury.
The results from the Men’s Doubles draw is available here.
Women’s Doubles – Jacobsen and Severinová Stroll to Title in Style
Stine Jacobsen and Zuzana Severinová have really had an impressive month on the FIR World Tour. After winning the SWT Dubai Racketlon Classic two weeks ago, they’re now the new Women’s Doubles World Champions.
In the end, they dominated the final against Amke Fischer and Natalie Paul. The tightest of the three sets was table tennis, where Fischer and Paul stuck with the No.2 seeds throughout. Ultimately, Jacobsen and Severinová won 23-21 and never looked back.
The badminton is where they really hit their stride. In particular they dominated the second half, with Severinová controlling the net and forcing errors out of both Fischer and Paul. A 21-12 badminton victory put them up by 11 points heading into Severinová’s two strongest sports.
The first half was a relatively tight affair. While Jacobsen won against Paul, it was only 11-7. However, the second half was a Zuzana Severinová masterclass. The Czech star overpowered Amke Fischer and won the squash 21-10. That result ruled out the need for tennis and sealed the Women’s Doubles title for the pair.
For Jacobsen, that result means that she adds a third World Championship trophy to her collection this year. She is now the Women’s Singles, Women’s +40 Singles and Women’s Doubles World Champion.
It’s also a huge landmark moment for Zuzana Severinová. The Czech player has now won her first elite-level world title, adding to her U21 Singles trophy that she won back in 2019. It was even more special for the star to win it in her own city.
While her eight-year reign ended, there was still space on the podium for Christine Seehofer. Seehofer and Bettina Bugl beat Myriam Enmer and Margaux Randjbar to collect a bronze medal.
The full Women’s Doubles results are available here.
A full report from the Mixed Doubles, Juniors, Seniors and Amateurs categories will be coming over the next few days.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
Image Credit / Filip Rejthar
