Estonia's épée team faces Denmark for 11th place at European Championships in France

Estonia's men's épée team advanced to the 11th-12th place match at the European Championships in Antony, France, where Denmark awaits. On the way there, Estonia defeated Germany but fell short against Czechia with a score of 38:45.

Estonia's men's épée team will finish the European Championships in Antony, France at 11th-12th place, facing Denmark in the 11th place match. The team is made up of Kasper Tafenau, Sten Priinits, Oliver Laasik and Markus Salm.

Opening victory and loss to France

In the tournament's opening match, Estonia defeated Great Britain 45:39. Tafenau and Priinits won the first two bouts, and although Laasik lost 3:4 to William East, the team managed to maintain a solid lead. Tafenau eventually defeated James Jeal 5:2, giving Estonia a three or four-touch advantage for the rest of the match.

In the round of 16, however, the top-seeded France awaited, having had a bye in the group stage. The hosts have dominated fencing at the highest level for a long time, winning Olympic gold in 2016, and over the past seven years have added two world championship titles. The Estonians managed to win three bouts: Salm defeated Kendrick Jean Joseph 4:2, Tafenau defeated the same opponent 5:2, and Salm also defeated Alexandre Bardenet 6:4. The final result, however, was 31:45 in France's favour.

Victory over Germany, loss to Czechia

In the first placement match, Estonia faced Germany. Germany led 10:6, but the Estonians turned the match around and reached a 20:17 score with three consecutive bout victories. Matthew Bülau did defeat Salm 7:6, but Tafenau scored the decisive final bout 6:2, securing Estonia a 36:30 victory.

The match against Czechia was slow-paced. Estonia led 14:10, but the Czechs equalized with the fourth bout, and thereafter the competition remained even. Before the decisive bout, Czechia had a 30:29 lead, and Tafenau failed to level the score in the final bout. Estonia lost 38:45.

Denmark awaits in the finish

In the 11th-12th place match, Estonia faces Denmark, who lost to a neutral-flag team 26:45 in the group stage. In placement matches, Denmark did defeat Finland by a large margin 45:25, but fell to the Netherlands 35:45. For Estonia's team, this is an important benchmark of the season; an 11th-12th place finish would represent a strong result for the team in a European context.