Finland and Hungary will host the new-style European Team Championships next year, according to an announcement by the European Squash Federation today.
The increasing size of the championships, which have run each year since 1973 and now feature almost 50 teams, has led to difficulties in finding hosts for the event.
“Only a few countries have facilities located close to an international airport that include a venue with 12 to 13 courts and accommodation facilities with 450 to 500 beds,” explained ESF President Hugo Hannes. “Therefore the ESF Board submitted a number of motions intended to help future hosts.
“One of the motions was to bring the European Team Championships and the European Nations Challenge Cup under one umbrella to provide a European Team Championships of three divisions, with divisions 1 and 2 taking place at the same time and venue, and division 3 to be played in another location but also to be played in the spring instead of in the autumn.”
This motion was carried at the recent ESF AGM, and from 2011 onwards the European Team Championships will be played in 3 divisions: Division 1 with eight men’s and eight women’s teams, and Division 2 with 12 men’s and eight women’s teams. All other teams will compete in Division 3. There will be opportunities for promotion and relegation of two teams between all divisions.
The 2011 championships, featuring the first two divisions, will take place in Finland, while action in the third division will take place in Hungary.
The AGM motion to reduce the ETC men’s team from four players to three was defeated, with 14 votes against and 10 in favour.
“This outcome was disappointing for the ESF Board as the proposal, had it been accepted, would have reduced the number of courts required for the Championships to six plus one glass court,” explained Hannes. “It would also have brought the ETC into line with the World Championships; it would have reduced the number of hotel rooms needed; it would have reduced the cost for participating countries; and, importantly, it would have avoided the potential for countback on points thus making the game easier for the general public to understand. It could also have assisted promotion of the game from a marketing perspective.”
Members approved the motion for the ETC to revert to a four-day competition, as the changes will lead to fewer teams in the top two divisions.
The following nations have agreed to host the remaining ESF championships in 2011:
Germany: U15/U17 Junior Team Championships
Switzerland; U19 Junior Individual & Team Championships
Ireland: European Club Championships
Poland: European Individual Closed Championships
Portugal: European Individual Masters Championships
After completing his first two-year term on the ESF Board, Sweden’s Thomas Troedsson was re-elected Vice President.