The first world champions have been crowned at the IBTA World Blind Tennis Championship in Vilnius. The decisive matches of the Championship are being played today at SEB Arena.
Australia’s G. Hobbs claimed the women’s B4 world title. In the final, she defeated her compatriot M. Kelly 4:1 4:0.
“It feels amazing to win the World Championship. I have blind tennis to thank for giving me the opportunity to compete in different parts of the world against players from so many different countries,” said G. Hobbs after the final.
In the women’s B2 final, Luxembourg’s L. Conzemius defeated Australia’s C. Webeck 5:4(5) 4:2 to claim the title.
Another gold medal for Australia was won by C. Lane. In the women’s B3 final, she defeated Poland’s A. Karakula 4:2 4:1.
The women’s B1 world championship title went to Italy. In the final, Italy’s R. Pierri defeated Argentina’s R. Lescano 4:2, 2:4, 10:3.
Australia’s dominance in the women’s events at the IBTA World Blind Tennis Championship was also followed by success for the country’s men. Training partners M. Leigh and R. Fairbank faced each other in the decisive match. This time, M. Leigh came out on top, defeating R. Fairbank 5:3, 4:2.
The men’s B4 competition was played in a round-robin format. Great Britain’s Ivan Rodriguez Deb claimed the title, finishing ahead of Australia’s Arato Katsuda.
In the men’s B2 final, Australia’s O. Fanshawe cruised past Italy’s D. Viglianti 4:0 4:0.
The men’s B1 competition ended with a triumph for Finland’s Jani Kallunki. In the final, he defeated IBTA world No. 1 N. Rizvi of Great Britain 4:1 5:3.
