Category: Champions League

New for 2018 is the Champion’s League second division, which will feature 4 teams who will play each other twice, once in Sweden and once in Germany. Due to player constraints, the format has been modified, each squad features 4 players, 3 men and 1 lady, with a fixture constituting 2 x Men’s singles, 1 x Mixed doubles, 1 x Men’s Doubles and 1 x Ladies singles. All four franchises selected their squads back in January after the conclusion of the Division 1 draft. Here we will introduce you to the new teams in this division, their squads and their captain’s opinions on all things Division 2.

 

iPro London 2 – Captain: Johnny Bispham (b)

Squad: Jordan Dainty (s), Frank Kleiber (g), Lindsay Johnson-Farge (b)

Few know more on the statistical likelihoods of results in Racketlon than Johnny Bispham, who favours cold hard mathematics over gut feeling. Having aided iPro London captain Duncan Stahl ahead of the draft in 2017, he was the logical choice to captain iPro London 2 in 2018. Johnny’s draft strategy was to select the strongest players available for each leg ahead of picking players who could play both events his desire for detail evening seeing him run a “mock” draft, during which he correctly selected 11 of the 12 players drafted and placed 9 of those 11 players in their correct sides.

Looking ahead to the competition and Johnny was very happy with how it all went, he expects Berlin to be the toughest challenge in Sweden while Malta will come to the fore in Germany. However, Johnny is not daunted. He fully expects iPro London 2 to win Division 2 winning “5 matches out of 6”. Should Johnny be so confident (or should we say cocky?). In this authors view, looking at his squad, his male line up in Sweden looks very strong, it was a surprise to some that Jordan Dainty wasn’t snapped up by a Division 1 side for Sweden, while Frank Kleiber makes for a great replacement in Germany. Much may depend on Lindsay Johnson-Farge, who faces a tough job against Jenny Schmitz and Dara Ladner, but if she can steal a few vital points, that could be all iPro London 2 need.

 

Berlin Berghain Boasters 2 – Captain: Jenny Schmitz (b)

Squad: Jean Michot (b), Tobias Hausen (g), Christofer Hellberg (s)

The Triple B2’s enter this event fully confident that they will dominate the fifth discipline or ‘the bar’ as it is known in common parlance (Surely these crack athletes are all responsible adults and therefore teetotal???? – Ed). However, they are a side who are not just here to make up the numbers. While she missed out on picking her dream squad in the draft, captain Jenny was able to secure the services of one player from her wish-list and is overall very happy with the team she has. In agreement with the assessment of her rival, Johnny Bispham, she expects to be a comparatively stronger side in Sweden, but has pleasantly heard that Tobias Hausen is practising hard and will be in great shape come the German leg. Jenny is however keeping her cards close to her chest, and while she concedes that she expects the Triple B2’s to be competing, she is unwilling to declare an overall winner of Division 2.

In this authors view, it is clear that the Swedish leg is vital for the Triple B2’s, the likely singles rubber between Dainty and Hellberg in the London vs Berlin fixture may well decide who leads after the first leg. Perhaps the crucial factor will be the form and fitness of their captain Jenny Schmitz. Rumours abound of recent injury troubles hindering her preparations for Sweden, and that will be massive for the Triple B2’s, as a fully fit Jenny is by far and away the dominate lady in Division 2.

 

Malta Magic 2 – Captain: Michael Skytte Pedersen (b)

Squad: Thomas Olsen (b), Heli Makela/Tanya Omlin (s/g), Hans Van Daele (g)

Captain Michael had the advantage but also pressure of first pick in the draft and certainly that position had weighed on his mind in the days running up to the first pick. It was a surprise to some (certainly Mr Bispham), that he opted for Thomas Olsen as his opening pick. For Michael this was entirely tactical: “On drafting day I changed my mind, from Heli Makela/Tanya Omlin, and instead picked Thomas Olsson. I knew this would leave Jenny and Dara in a very tough position, since they both had to pick a male player to play both events.”. Having seized some initiative away from his competitors, Michael feels that he had a very good draft, “I blocked Jenny & Dara’s first pick and as a bonus confused Johnny”. Looking ahead to his chances, Michael is very frank, “We are clearly comparatively stronger in Germany, especially when compared to London and Berlin teams for Sweden”. As a result, Michael goes to Sweden with low expectations, confident that his team can turn it on in the second leg in Germany. As for the final result, well Michael is backing only one winner, Malta Magic 2, however he does reserve praise for rival Dara Ladner from the Swiss Army Knives 2 “Dara had a really good, and clever draft, picking Fredrik Tor Groth for Sweden, Markus Klement for Germany and Graham King to play both events – I think she and her team will perform really well and come in second, to Malta Magic 2 of course!”

It is a different captaincy style to that of Johnny Bispham, but to this author it is apparent that Michael has put a lot of thought into his draft picks and his strategy. While they are not the favourite for the Sweden leg, they could pose a real danger in leg 2 in Germany. However, I do fear that they will be leaving themselves too much to do, unless they can grab an underdog victory in Sweden against either Berlin or London.

 

Swiss Army Knives 2 – Captain: Dara Ladner (b)

Squad: Markus Klement (g), Frederik Tor Groth (s), Graham King (b)

It was not such an advantage for Dara Ladner, as by her own admission, the first two picks almost destroyed her whole plan. However for the Swiss it still ended up ok, Dara admitting “I was surprised I was able to get Markus Klement, but in the end I got three players who were high up on my list”. Dara like her fellow captains is aware of the differences between the teams across each leg is really looking forward to playing everyone twice. Much like Malta Magic 2, Dara considers herself to be stronger in the second leg in Germany, however she reserves the right to be positive for the opening leg in Sweden, “Fredrik Groth has had some good results and will be good for us Sweden and of course no one should underestimate Graham King”.

Much like their Maltese counterparts, the Swiss Army Knives 2 look better set up for the second leg in Germany. Much will ride on the performance of Frederik Groth in Sweden, but also Dara herself, in particular her matchup against Berlin captain Jenny Schmitz. While this author does not see the Swiss winning Division 2, they are certainly going to cause a few headaches and I can see them dealing the decisive blow to either Berlin or London’s title charge in the second leg in Germany.

 

Now, the talking is all over and the action shifts to the courts in Sweden, this Friday, 23rd February. A new division, a modified format, which team will adjust best and get themselves ahead during Leg 1? To see how it is going keep an eye on the FIR Facebook page for updates throughout the day of competition and on Racketlon.net for a report on events next week.

 

James Pope
UK Racketlon

The 2018 Champion’s League kicks off with a vengeance this Friday (23rd February) at the Swedish Open, but what can we expect in the 2018 edition? iPro London begin as the reigning champions, but they face seven rival teams eager to end their run.  Before the fixtures were revealed, I spoke to all the captains, to get their views on what they have learned since 2017, their squads and who they think will be the champions in 2018.

Learning from Experience

“You need plans A, B, C and also D, that is what I have learned” says iPro London captain Duncan Stahl when he considers the draft.  In fact, among our returning captains there was agreement that they have learned the experience of the 2017 draft, but mainly the experience of the Champion’s League itself.  Copenhagen captain, Morten Jaksland identifies that the draft is only half of a captain’s job, “There are many “surprise” results in this format, but I think that many of these surprises are actually good captaincy, selecting the right line up”.  For Lukas Windischberger, captain of the C&C Racketlonshop Austria side, it is the playing that is crucial.  “It is really physical to play these team matches, 3 or even 4 in a day, so I see having a substitute as crucial to a good line up”.  It was a similar idea for Malta Magic captain, Kresten Hougaard, who went into the draw with a focus on Germany, “I wanted and got a strong team in Germany, so long as we sneak points in Sweden, we can be title contenders”.  It isn’t just the experience of captaincy that is helping our returning captains, but also their support networks, Amke Fischer delighted that older members of the Berlin Berghain Boasters family were on hand to lend their views.  “It is so much easier for a captain now that we have a support compared to last year, Thorsten (Lentfer), Conny (Rademacher) and Jack (Bishop), instead of being on my own!”.  For another captain, the focus was simply on building the team in the right image, King of Rackets captain, Lieselot de Bleeckere was focussed on her key idea, team spirit.  “I only looked for players who would ‘fit’ in our side and its attitude”.  Obviously, two of our captains, Anna-Klara Ahlmer of the Swedish Vikings and Benny Hampl of the Swiss Army Knives, had no prior experience coming into the draft.  Despite this neither captain was just guessing, both had plans, Benny focussing on stamina and a Racketlon specific quality, “the love of Racketlon, and therefore that ability to keeping fighting no matter what”.

 

Making their Picks!

Experience and planning are all very well, however, there are 7 other unpredictable factors in the draw, namely your fellow captains! With captains also able to retain players from 2017, the balance of what was required by each team was different in comparison to the 2017 draft.  Perhaps the main headache for captains was the availability of their retained players, the Swiss Army Knives and KoR both needed players available for both legs and that impacted on their draw choices.  Benny Hampl was however pleased with what he came out with, “Selecting Ed (Harvey) and Stine (Jacobson) means I have achieved my aims of a strong player for both events and an excellent lady for Sweden”.  It was easier for KoR captain Lieselot, she stuck close to home and went in for her brother, Pieter.  “I was happy I could select my brother for our home town team, and he is pleased to, not that he will admit it!”.  For most of our captains however, it was simply a case of selecting the best players they could for each leg, however some were posed with some new problems, Morten retained the services of Zuzka Severinova for Copenhagen, however with her unavailable in Sweden, he did face the new headache of selecting a lady for Sweden, “thankfully, I had the possibility to select Jo Shelley”.  Across our captains, none comes across as more pleased with his or her work than Lukas, delighted to have his squad of fellow Austrians, “I get to see these players regularly and we can build a real team spirit”.  Lukas was also the captain who has maybe gambled on the form of the returning Thorsten Deck, “I’ve known Thorsten a long time and I am delighted to see him back in Racketlon and in my side”.  For Malta Magic, Kresten was the cat who got the cream, “(Jörn) Sültrop was an absolute steal in the draft, especially as I was picking seventh, a mistake from some of my fellow captains”.  Beyond his German pick, the Malta based Dane is taking a very Danish side to Sweden, and is very confident with it.  Amke left delighted with her picks, principally opening pick Elmar Schaub, “Elmar was my favourite choice, great racket skills and a team player who fits perfectly into the BBB family”.  With her blank slate, Anna-Klara is setting a tone for the Swedish Vikings, “I focussed on creating a team with young and upcoming players”.  Finally, the ever sanguine, iPro London captain, Duncan simply mused “We are going to be a nightmare to play against”.

 

But who is going to win?

No captain felt they had missed out in the draw, but with what they had assembled where did they see their team finishing? Despite them all being pleased with their draft work, none of them are able to suggest anything other than an iPro London victory and a successful title defence in 2018.  But can iPro London handle this pressure?  More intriguingly, 5 captains (Amke, Kresten, Lieselot, Lukas and Morten) all see their side being strong enough to finish on the podium.  Given they all see iPro London winning, that leaves 5 teams scrapping for 2 spots in what could be incredible for this season’s Champion’s League and the second leg in Germany.  In the Most Valued Player competition, few captains can see past Natalie Paul also retaining her title from 2017, although Lieselot expects her brother to perform “or he is out again for next year”.  There is pressure everywhere you look at the 2018 Champion’s League!

Now, the talking is all over and the action shifts to the courts in Sweden, this Friday, 23rd February.  Will iPro London get off to the flying start they need to defend their title or will they be left clutching at thin air? To see how it is going keep an eye on the FIR Facebook page for updates throughout the day of competition and on Racketlon.net for a report on events next week.

 

James Pope
UK Racketlon

The Champion’s League returns for 2018 and following on with the same format as in 2017, Division 1 will feature 8 teams playing over two legs, the first at the Swedish Open (23 rd February) and the second at the German Open (3 rd August). Each team plays 7 matches, 3 in Sweden and 4 in Germany, playing each side once. In 2017, a full draft was undertaken, with each side selecting 5 players, however for 2018 each team captain could retain two players (plus themselves as captain) from their 2017 side before three picks were made. As a reminder, each squad requires a minimum of 3 men and 1 lady in both Sweden and Germany.

While we review the final picks for each team below, anyone who wishes, can re-watch the Live Draft Show, hosted by Dave Ridout, Jack Bishop and Alex Du Noyer from their secret London studio. But without further ado, let’s meet our 2018 teams, starting with defending champions, iPro London.

iPro London – Captain: Duncan Stahl (b) – 2017 Position: 1 st

Retained: Natalie Paul (b), Christian Wiessner (b)
Drafted: Rene Lindberg (s), Steffen Neumann (g), Max Plettenberg (g)

Overview

It was no surprise that 2017 champions iPro London retained the services of Natalie Paul, after she topped the MVP (Most Valuable Player) listings for the 2017 event, winning 83% of available singles points and 89% of available doubles points. With their second retained player Christian Wiessner also able to play both events, iPro London entered the draft in the luxurious position of needing just a man for Sweden and Germany. Duncan opted for Rene Lindberg who will be available in Sweden, considered by our expert panel to be the strongest man available for only Sweden, while in Germany they will add the talents of Steffen Neumann and Max Plettenberg to the squad. Duncan has used his retained players duel-leg availability to ensure he has cover for the tougher second weekend, an edge on many of the teams.

 

King of Rackets – Captain: Lieselot de Bleeckere (b) – 2017 Position: 2nd

Retained: Jesper Hougaard (s), Jörg Kanonenberg (g)
Drafted: Pieter de Bleeckere (b), Markus Borg (b), Jussi Nevanlinna (s)

Overview

It was to some mild amusement that captain Lieselot left brother Pieter untouched in the 2017 draft, due to him being unavailable in Sweden. Pieter instead ended up at iPro London part of the team that pipped his sister to the title. For 2018, Lieselot dived straight in for her brother as the first draft pick and secured the services of a highly versatile player. With her retained players Jesper Hougaard and Jörg Kanonenberg split between Sweden and Germany, Lieselot opted to draft players who were available for both weekends to secure her team, Markus Borg joining her first pick Pieter in the side. Her final pick, Jussi Nevanlinna means she has bucked the trend of many captains and opted to strengthen her side in Sweden. In 2017, KoR were behind iPro London from the start, so it is fair to assume that in 2018, Lieselot wants options in Sweden to try and get her nose in front from the beginning.

 

C&C Racketlonshop Union Austria – Captain: Lukas Windischberger (b) – 2017 Position: 3 rd

Retained: Hans Sherpa (b), Julia Pabisch (b)
Drafted: Thorsten Deck (g), Roland Pichler (b), Graham Cain (s)

Overview

As in 2017, Lukas has stuck with an Austrian core to the side, the world number 1 will be joined by compatriots Roland Pichler, Julia Pabisch and the rapidly improving Hans Sherpa in both Sweden and Germany. In the build up to hosting the 2017 European Championships, the Austrians trained hard and that showed at the recent Vienna Classics, perhaps driving Lukas’ strategy. Joining them in Sweden will be Graham Cain whilst in Germany the team will be joined by Thorsten Deck, returning to the sport after a few years away. There was intrigue around which captain would gamble on his form and fitness on the return, and it was Lukas, looking to add a potential big gun to his side for the crucial Germany leg. Lukas will be on the only captain with the luxury of a spare player in both Sweden and Germany, thanks to the availability of his Austrian core at both legs of the Champion’s League. In such a close event, could that be crucial?

 

Copenhagen – Captain: Morten Jaksland (b) – 2017 Position: 4 th

Retained: Loic Cencig (b), Zuzka Severinova (g)
Drafted: Dan Busby (g), Jo Shelley (s), Jacob Steinmetz (s)

Overview

With a team able to win 3388 points across the Champion’s League, it was gutting for Copenhagen to fall short of the podium by 4 points in 2017, Morten himself just 5 points short of being the MVP. For 2018 the Copenhagen side will be looking to go a step or two better. Copenhagen’s retained players, Loic Cencig and Zuzka Severinova will also be keen to set their 2017 record straight. Into the draft and Morten quickly went in for Dan Bubsy, who will miss Sweden, but will come in for Germany, hoping the Brit can keep his recent good form going and do some damage in the crucial second leg. Morten also swooped in for another Brit, Jo Shelley as his lady for Sweden and completes his line up with Jacob Steinmetz in Sweden. With his picks, there will be minimal flexibility for Morten, availability meaning that his team will be well known in advance for opposing captains.

 

Malta Magic – Captain: Kresten Hougaard (b) – 2017 Position: 5 th

Retained: Christian Wall (b), Hannah Boden (g)
Drafted: Jörn Sültrup (g), Michael Sorenson (s), Stine Krogsoe (b)

Overview

In 2017, President Hougaard went for youth in the shape of Piers Boden and Alistair Prades before leading from the front, himself. No player won more singles points, than Kresten’s 264 (86%) in the 2017 edition. Kresten has retained the services of Hannah Boden, as he sticks to trend of favouring the rising stars of the sport. However, more importantly, the retention of Christian Wall for both events will enable Kresten to rely on a strong core to the side. Stine Krogsoe comes in as his lady for Sweden, although her availability for both events gives Kresten some cover and options. The team will be completed by Jörn Sültrup in Germany and Michael Sorenson in Sweden. Malta were the “best of the rest” in 2017 finishing in fifth, however they were also the only side to defeat champions iPro London. Kresten will be exceptionally keen to go further in 2018, certainly they look in excellent shape for the second leg in Germany.

 

Berlin Berghain Boasters – Captain: Amke Fischer (b) – 2017 Position: 6 th

Retained: Thorsten Lentfer (b), Cornelius Rademacher (b)
Drafted: Elmar Schaub (g), Kristian Jorgensen (s), Jimmy Tay (s)

Overview

The “Triple B’s” were off the pace in 2017, and one can only imagine in 2018 that captain Amke will be keen for a stronger showing. With Thorsten Lentfer and Cornelius Rademacher retained for both events, Amke darted in for her first draft pick, Elmar Schaub. Elmar, available in Germany, was something of an unknown pick to our expert panel, bar some inside knowledge provided by the ever-verbose Callum Reid: “Yeah, he’s good”. Thanks for that Callum…. With Elmar secured, Amke needed men for Sweden and she pitched for Kristian Jorgensen and Jimmy Tay. Similar to KoR, Amke has more options in Sweden, but with three players in the side for both events, there should be stability for the Triple B’s.

 

Swiss Army Knives – Captain: Benny Hampl (b) – 2017 Position 8 th

Retained: Alex Du Noyer (s), Korbinian Heim (g), Silke Altmann (g)
Drafted: Ed Harvey (b), Stine Jacobson (s)

Overview

Benny Hampl comes in as captain for the Swiss Army Knives replacing Nicole Eisler & Astrid Reimer-Kern. As a result of the duel-captains from last year, the Knives were allowed to retain 3 players, but would only get to pick in the first two rounds of the draft. Having downloaded the results of the last 2 years from FIR Tournament Software (with help from UK Racketlon rankings officer, Richard Boreham), Benny opted to retain Alex Du Noyer for Sweden while in Germany he can call on the services of Korbinian Heim and Silke Altmann. With only two picks, Benny snaffled Ed Harvey for his first pick in the Champions League. Ed, the “Nugget” as he is known in UK circles, is available for both events therefore he confirmed Benny’s male line up. His final pick was for Stine Jacobson, who will be his lady for Sweden, and the Knives join the ranks of the teams whose team selections are known in advance for both events. The Knives claimed the wooden spoon in 2017, but for them the only way is up (surely?)

 

Swedish Vikings – Captain: Anna-Klara Ahlmer (g) – New Franchise

Retained: Luka Pentinnen (b), Malte Thyegod (b)
Drafted: Cedric Junillon (g), Jesper Vangkilde (s), Dianne Baker (s)

Overview

A new captain, Anna-Klara Ahlmer, for a new franchise, the Swedish Vikings replacing the Helsinki Hawks for 2018. Anna-Klara opted to retain the services of Luka Pentinnen and Malta Thyegod with both gents available for both events she entered the draft with a strong core of players. She quickly plundered the services of Cedric Junillon for Germany, while Jesper Vangkilde and Dianne Baker will complete the team in Sweden. Anna-Klara herself, will be in the captain’s chair for both events, but will not be fully fit in time to lead her team in the home leg. While the Vikings may start at home, you have to feel that their side will be stronger pillaging on foreign soil in the second leg in Germany.

 

Expert Review

There are lots of names and a few idle theories from myself, but for a more detailed assessment of the implications of this draft, we turn to Johnny Bispham. “I make iPro London the strong favourites and fully expect them to retain their title. With Stahl, Paul and Wiessner available for both weekends, they have a strong spine to their team. I don’t expect it to be entirely plain sailing, there are in my eyes two strong challengers to iPro London for the 2018 title, Copenhagen and C&C Racketlonshop Union Austria. The Austrian’s have in their captain, Lukas, the best player in the competition, plus with Hans Sherpa’s improvement over the past 12 months they have a good core for both legs. Perhaps crucial for the Austrian’s is the performance of Thorsten Deck in Germany, if he is the player he was a few years ago, the Austrian’s will be certainly in the hunt. As a team however, only Copenhagen appear to have the firepower to stop iPro London, particularly in Germany with a Jaksland, Busby and Cencig male line up supported by the ever improving Severinova.

At the other end of the table, I sadly see it as a long season for two teams, the Swiss Army Knives and debutants, the Swedish Vikings. A lot rides on the Vikings young star, Luka Pentinnen who will lead the side in Sweden. While Cedric Junillon will strengthen the side in Germany, the key question will be on the form of captain Anna-Klara Ahlmer also in Germany as she recovers from injury. They will be aiming at the Swiss Army Knives to avoid the wooden spoon. The knives lost the majority of their stars from 2017 and face an uphill struggle in 2018, the first leg in Sweden will be crucial for their final placing.”

There you have the teams for Division 1 of the 2018 Champion’s League. With few players available for both legs this season, a number of teams will be reliant on two separate squads and that clearly impacted on the retention and draft choices. The trend seems to be for teams stacking their decks for Germany, only KoR and the Triple B’s have bucked that trend. New for 2018 will be Division 2, with a likely format of 4 teams playing each other twice (once at each leg). The draft for these teams will occur later this week and Racketlon.net and the Racketlon Facebook page will bring you all you need to know on those teams.

 

James Pope
UK Racketlon

This Monday at 21.30 (CET), the Champions League Draft for Division 1, will take place LIVE on the FIR Facebook Page. We will have a panel of experts on hand to discuss and analyse all the picks. The captains of the 8 franchise teams from London, Switzerland, Malta, Vienna, Copenhagen, Sweden, Oudenaarde and Berlin will pick their squads for this year’s tournament. So all players who have registered to play Champions League this year, make sure you tune into Facebook this Monday evening to see which international team you get picked for! Each Team Captain has been able to keep 2 players from last year’s squad, so they will each have 3 picks in this year’s Draft. The Champions League will be played over 2 weekends: Feb 23rd in Malmo and August 3rd in Nussloch!

Duncan Stahl

SIGN UP at www.fir.tournamentsoftware.com BEFORE 15th JAN IF YOU WANT TO PLAY CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2018!

ADD YOUR NAME TO THE PLAYER’S LIST AND WAIT TO SEE WHICH TEAM YOU GET PICKED FOR IN THE LIVE DRAFT!

PLAYERS FROM THE 2017 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LOVED THE EXPERIENCE OF PLAYING FOR DIFFERENT INTERNATIONAL TEAMS AND HAVING TEAM-MATES FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD!

 

Who Can Play in the New Champions League?

Champions League is open to all FIR registered players. It will be played on the Friday (23rd Feb) at the Swedish Open and on the Friday (3rd Aug) at the German Open.
You can choose to play only in Germany, or only in Sweden or in both!
Division 1 is mainly for Elite and high “B” players and Division 2 will be for low “B” and “C” players.

How Do I register to play Champions League?

Go to the normal FIR Tournament Software page: www.fir.tournamentsoftware.com and you will see an entry called “Champions League, Player Registration” Go to this page and register yourself here stating whether you are available to play Champions League at the Swedish Open or at the German Open…or ideally at both tournaments! Deadline for registration is 15th January 2018!

NB To enter the IWT Swedish Open or IWT German Open, please go to their separate entry pages as normal.

What are the Teams and which Team will I play for?

All the players who register to play Champions League will be put into a large pool of players and then on 21st January 2018 there will be a Live Draft where the 8 team captains from Division 1 and all the captains from Division 2, will select their squad of players. This will create very even strength teams to compete for the 2018 Champions League titles in both divisions.

Who are the Franchise Teams and captains?

Division 1

Technifibre Copenhagen – Team Captain: Morten Jaksland
Bergahain Berlin Boasters – Team Captain: Amke Fischer
iPro London – Team Captain: Duncan Stahl
KoR Oudenaarde – Team Captain: Lieselot de Bleeckere
Three Percent Malta – Team Captain: Kresten Hougaard
Swedish Vikings – Team Captain: Anna-Klara Ahlmer
Swiss Eagles – Team Captain: Benny Hampl
Kloteneuerberg Racketlonshop Austria: – Lukas Windischberger

Division 2

iPro London 2 – Johnny Bispham
Three Percent Malta 2 – Michael Pedersen
KoR Oudenaarde 2 – tbc
Swedish Vikings 2 – Christian Hellberg
Swiss Eagles 2 – Dara Ladner
Berghain Berlin Boasters 2 – Jenny Schmitz

What’s the Format of the New Champions League?

Champions League 2018 will be in a league format, where every team plays each other once. Each Division 1 team will play their first 3 matches in Sweden (23rd Feb) and their remaining 4 matches in Germany (3rd Aug).
Div 2 will play 2 matches in Sweden and 3 matches in Germany (as there are only 6 teams in Division 2).

Team Match Format

Each match will consist of 3x Men’s singles, 1x Women’s singles, 1x Men’s doubles and 1x Mixed doubles (all to 11up), but the singles players are also able to play in the doubles matches, meaning a team only needs a minimum of 3x men and 1x women per match.

The Draft

The Draft will be done LIVE via various social media platforms at 21.00 CET on 21st January so that all players can see what team they get picked for!
Nb Each team captain will be free to pick any player from any country.

Team Fees

Each team will pay an entry fee to the Tournament Director (this would be made up of payments from each individual team member).

For any Champions League questions – please contact: duncan.stahl@aureus-sv.com

 

Duncan Stahl

After the huge success of the brand new Champions League in 2017, the most exciting team format in Racketlon is back! It is also being expanded to 2 divisions for 2018 – so players of all abilities from all countries now have the chance of being selected to represent one of the worldwide team franchises!

The Champions League 1st Division will once again involve all the Elite players on the World Tour, down to mid-level B players. The 2nd Division is aimed at C players up to mid-level B players.

Sweden & Germany for Champions League 2018

The Champions League will take place on 23rd February (as part of the Swedish Open in Malmo) and on 3rd August (as part of the German Open in Nussloch).

All players who wish to sign up to play in Champions League 2018 – in either the 1st or 2nd Divison – can do so via Tournament Software. On registration players can choose to play only in Sweden or only in Germany or in both. But they must sign up before 15th January.

Then after the entry deadline, all the Team captains will once again take part in a Live Draft, when they will select their team from the list of players who have registered via Tournament Software.

The Captains from the eight 1st Division teams are being allowed to keep a maximum of 2 players from their 2017 squads – the rest of their team players will go back into the Draft.

The brand new 2nd Division teams will select their whole squads from the Draft in January.

Any player from any country can be selected to play for any team!

 

A Unique Racketlon Experience for the Players

The Champions League was a fantastic experience for all the players involved in 2017: the team captains found sponsors, produced team shirts, talked tactics, fought hard for each other, took part in the Live Draw which was broadcast live on Facebook so that everyone could see which team they had been chosen for…but by far the main piece of positive feedback was how much everyone had enjoyed playing in Teams and becoming close team-mates with different players from all over the world.

This mix of players, the unique team spirits that were developed and how evenly matched all the teams were, creating very close, exciting matches throughout the competition is what the new Champions League is all about.

With the 2 Divisions for 2018, this Champions League experience is now open to everyone!

Teams for 1st Division:

iPro London (capt. Duncan Stahl)
KOR Oudenaarde (capt. Lieselot De Bleeckere)
Swiss Army Knives (capt. Benni Hampl)
Three Percent Malta Magic (capt. Kresten Hougaard)
Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria (capt. Lukas Windischberger)
Berlin Berghain Boasters (capt. Amke Fischer)
Copenhagen (Morten Jaksland)
Swedish Vikings (capt. Anna-Klara Ahlmer)

 

Teams for 2nd Division (more to be confirmed soon!)

iPro London 2 (capt. Johnny Bispham)
KOR Oudenaarde 2 (capt. Hans Van Daele)
Malta Magic 2 (capt. Michael Skytte Pedersen)
Berlin Berghain Boasters 2 (capt. Jenny Schmitz)

 

All players who want to go into the Draft for Champions League 2018 (to play in Sweden or in Germany or in both)…PLEASE SIGN UP NOW on fir.tournamentsoftware.com
Duncan Stahl

The new Champions League format for 2017 came to its conclusion at the German Open with iPro London crowned as champions after a dominant display in Nussloch winning all 4 of their remaining matches.

The iPro London team in Germany consisted of Duncan Stahl (c), Natalie Paul, Christian Wiessner and Peter De Bleeckere and many had predicted that their first game on Friday morning against the King of Rackets’ team of Jesper Hougaard, Lieselot de Bleeckere (c), Paul Sach and Jorg Kanonenberg would be a key match.

Duncan Stahl and Jesper Hougaard played out a very tight match at Men’s no.1 singles ending completely equal at 35-35, but two very close London victories in the men’s doubles (P. De Bleeckere/Stahl vs Kanonenberg/P.Sach) and mixed (Paul/Wiessner vs L.De Bleeckere/J.Hougaard) as well dominant victories by Natalie Paul over Lieselot and by Wiessner over Kanonberg meant that iPro London recorded a crucial +28 victory, denying KOR a vital bonus point. This put the London team in a very strong position which they never let slip throughout the weekend as they went on to win their remaining matches against the Berlin Boasters, Klosteneuburg Austria and the Swiss Eagles.

A big win in their final match on Sat evening against Copenhagen ensured that KOR finished in 2nd place and a consistently strong performance over the weekend by the Austrian team enabled them to move from 7th position to edge into 3rd place (by just 4 points on points difference).

Once again a feature of all the matches in Germany was just how evenly matched all the Teams were with 8 of the 16 matches played being decided by less than 20 points (when there are 264 points being played for in every team match).

Most Valuable Player for the 2017 Champions League was decided by which player scored the most overall points for their team (in both doubles and singles). Again, this was very close but congratulations go to Natalie Paul for taking the MVP! See the top 5 players below:

 

Player	Team	Total Singles	Total Doubles	Total Points
Natalie Paul	London	256	273	529
Morten Jaksland	Copenhagen	255	269	524
Lukas Windischberger	Austria	259	262	521
Duncan Stahl	London	262	253	515
Kresten Hougaard	Malta	264	251	515

 

It was clear that all the players hugely enjoyed the experience of representing their different team franchises, playing with players from different countries and showing a great sense of spirit and pride for their teams – this was largely down to the huge effort of all the captains who provided sponsors, team logos and team shirts ensuring each Team Franchise create their own style and identity.

Captains will each be allowed to keep two of their players for next year’s 2018 Champions League before another Draft is done which new players will be able to sign up for. There are also plans for a 2nd Division which will give the opportunity for B & C players to experience the special thrill of this new Champions League competition.

Here is the final Champions League table for 2017…

 

	Team	Matches Played	Wins	Points Difference	TOTAL POINTS
1.	iPro London	7	6	+237	16
2.	King of Rackets	7	5	+111	12
3.	Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria	7	4	+5	10
4.	Technifibre Copenhagen	7	4	+1	10
5.	Three Percent Malta Magic	7	3	-45	8
6.	Berlin Berghain Boasters	7	3	-81	8
7.	Helsinki Hawks	7	1	-89	7
8.	Swiss Army Knives	7	2	-119	6

Duncan Stahl

Nearly 5 months has passed since the first round of the Champion’s League took place at the Swedish Open in Malmo, but in fairer, warmer weather, round 2 is fast approaching at the German Open on Friday 28th July, with the final matches in the afternoon of Saturday 29th July.  To whet your appetite and refresh your mind here is a review of the first round and a preview of what is to come in Nussloch.

Round 1 Review – iPro London Pegged Back, with Quite A Chasing Pack

With four singles rubbers and a brace of doubles rubbers in each tie, there are a staggering 264 points up for grabs in a Champion’s League fixture.  Teams were awarded 2 points for the victory, with a winning bonus point if a team won by more than 40 points and a losing bonus point if defeat was by less than 20 points.  Our 8 sides were split into two groups, with iPro London, Helsinki Hawks, Three Percent Malta Magic and Technifibre Copenhagen in one grouping and KoR Oudenaarde, Swiss Army Knives, Berghain Berlin Boasters and Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria in the second, (groupings that had been determined in a draw performed by Daryl Selby!).  Each team played their fellow group members as their opening three fixtures in the Champions League.

Amongst both an “expert” panel and their fellow captains, iPro London and KoR Oudenaarde were installed as the pre-event favourites, but both sides stumbled on the opening day as no side went unbeaten in Sweden.  iPro London started out with a thumping bonus point wins over the Helsinki Hawks and Technifibre Copenhagen, however they came unstuck against Three Percent Malta Magic going down to a 4 point defeat.  With Copenhagen defeating Malta, the first grouping saw three sides finished with two wins and a defeat.  Only Helsinki went without a victory.  In the second group, joint favourites, KoR Oudenaarde were also similarly unable to remain undefeated, having edged out both the Swiss Army Knives and Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria in their opening ties, they looked ready to pounce on the inability of London, Copenhagen or Malta to dominate in the other group, however they came undone against the Bergain Berlin Boasters suffering a 17 point defeat.  With the Swiss Army Knives defeating Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria, who had opened their account with victory over Berlin, the final table for the weekend simply highlighted how close the whole event is.  In addition to defeating each other, the manner of the victories was telling, off the 12 matches played, there were just 4 winning bonus points earned, however 6 losing bonus points were earned.

Therefore as we head to Nussloch, iPro London top the table, however with three points (a bonus point victory) covering first to sixth and four matches to be played, it feels impossible to write off any side at the halfway stage.

	Team	Matches Played	Wins	Points Difference	TOTAL POINTS
1.	iPro London	3	2	+107	7
2.	Technifibre Copenhagen	3	2	+41	6
3.	King of Rackets	3	2	-2	5
4.	Swiss Army Knives	3	1	+12	4
5.	Berlin Berghain Boasters	3	2	+4	4
6.	Three Percent Malta Magic	3	2	-34	4
7.	Klosterneuburg Austria	3	1	-14	3
8.	Helsinki Hawks	3	0	-114	1

 

Captain’s Review

 

iPro London – 1st – 7 points

Squad Changes – Out: Emil Gunnarsson, Luke Penttinen. In: Christian Wiessner, Pieter De Bleeckere
Squad in Germany: Duncan Stahl (c), Natalie Paul, Christian Wiessner, Pieter De Bleeckere.
Fixtures (Friday 28th July unless stated, all times CEST): KoR Oudenaarde (10:45), Berghain Berlin Boasters (14:30), Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria (19:00), Swiss Army Knives (Saturday 17:30)

While somewhat perturbed by the defeat to Malta (who had beaten Copenhagen, a team London had dispatched with ease), captain Duncan Stahl was left pretty pleased with results in Sweden.  Heading to Germany, Duncan feels that London remain at a similar strength with their replacement players complementing those departing the squad.  However, he acknowledges that being first and staying first are two very different situations, particularly with respect to the bonus points which have made it “very interesting”.  Duncan remains confident and while acknowledging that the London results show how difficult Racketlon results can be to predict, that London can claim the title, with KoR second and Berlin in third.

 

Technifibre Copenhagen – 2nd – 6 points

Squad Changes – Out: Loic Cencig, Julie Irby Norregaard. In: Mark Harris
Squad in Germany: Morten Jaksland (c), Zuzana Severinova, Patrick Lorenz, Mark Harris.
Fixtures: Berghain Berlin Boasters (10:00), Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria (14:30), Swiss Army Knives (19:45), KoR Oudenaarde (Saturday 17:30).

Captain Morten Jaksland was delighted with the potential his squad showed with their bonus point victories over Helsinki and Malta, before being left somewhat baffled by the final match against London.  Morten left only to query whether the schedule worked against them, with three team matches in a day asking a lot of his squad.  Looking ahead to Germany, Morten waves goodbye to their “bombastic Frenchman” Loic Cencig, but he is pleased with the incoming Mark Harris, the Brit bringing strength to their badminton and in particular, to their potential doubles pairings, which Morten identifies as crucial in this team format.  Morten expects things to change in the standings in Germany, although he still expects London to win overall, he is quietly confident that Copenhagen can stay near the top, despite all the strong competition.

 

KoR Oudenaarde – 3rd – 5 points

Squad Changes – Out: Michael Strassle/Roland Pichler. In: Paul Sach, Joerg Kanonenberg.
Squad in Germany: Lieselot de Bleeckere (c), Jesper Hougaard, Paul Sach, Joerg Kanonenberg, Michael Moitzi.
Fixtures: iPro Sports London (10:45), Helsinki Hawks (15:15), Three Percent Malta Magic (19:45), Technifibre Copenhagen (Saturday 17:30).

Tagged early as a team to watch, it was an unfortunate start for KoR as Michael Strassle was lost early to injury, with Roland Pichler stepping in as an injury replacement.  However, captain Lieselot de Bleeckere was overall pretty pleased with her teams performance in Sweden.  Lieselot feels that they will be a stronger unit as they head to Germany, however there is the pressure of facing the currently top ranked teams (London and Copenhagen), in what could be seen as title deciding matches for all three sides.  Of course, the London match comes with the additional needle, as Lieselot comes up against brother Pieter in the London squad, when she declares that “I really have to beat my brother and the London team”.  Away from the sibling rivalry, Lieselot has faith in her team and she predicts nothing but a victory for the KoR in the Champions League 2017.

 

Swiss Army Knives – 4th – 4 points

Squad Changes – Out: Nicole Eisler, Emanuel Schopf (injury), Mikael Rehn, Niclas Larsson (injury). In: Astrid Reimer-Kern, Korbinian Heim (sub), Ray Jordan (sub).
Squad in Germany: Astrid Reimer-Kern (c), Alex Du Noyer, Steffan Neumann, Korbinian Heim, Ray Jordan.
Fixtures: Helsinki Hawks (10:45), Three Percent Malta Magic (15:15), Technifibre Copenhagen (19:45), iPro Sports London (Saturday 17:30).

The Swiss Army Knives head the chasing pack, the first of three teams currently on four points, for the Knives thanks to two losing bonus points.  With Sweden skipper, Nicole Eisler unavailable for the Germany leg, she hands the leadership of the team over to friend, Astrid Reimer-Kern.  Nicole was left very happy with the way it all turned out in Sweden, in particular the team spirit that was on display, which contributed to the team exceeding her predictions.  Looking ahead to Germany it is a blow for the Knives to lose both Niclas Larsson and Emanuel Schopf to injury, but they have had two substitutes approved by the Champions League panel in the form of Korbinian Heim and Ray Jordan.  Overall, Nicole remains positive especially because “we have Astrid Reimer-Kern”, showing her faith in her personal replacement.  The aim for these ladies is to challenge for a final podium place, and they have confidence after their unexpected results in Sweden.

 

Berlin Bergain Boasters – 5th – 4 points

Squad Changes – Out: Anders Rikan, Mikkel Brenoe-Jensen. In: Luke Barnes, Thorsten Lentfer.
Squad in Germany: Amke Fischer (c), Luke Barnes, Thorsten Lentfer, Jack Bishop.
Fixtures: Technifibre Copenhagen (10:00), iPro Sports London (14:30), Helsinki Hawks (19:00), Three Percent Malta Magic (Saturday – 16:45).

Triple B’s captain Amke Fischer is keeping her cards close to her chest, although she was willing to reveal that she was quite happy with her Berlin team’s achievements in Sweden.  She is predicting a close finish to the Champion’s League and while she ‘claims’ she would be happy with a top half finish she has left a veiled threat to her fellow teams that “Berlin are going to be even stronger in Nussloch, so their opponents had better look out”.  Can the German side seal the first new format Champion’s League title on home soil?

 

Three Percent Malta Magic – 6th – 4 points

Squad Changes – Out: Sebastian Hedlund. In: Anastasiya Bruzgina
Squad in Germany: Kresten Hougaard (c), Alistair Prades, Piers Boden, Svenja Kleb, Anastasiya Bruzgina.
Fixtures: Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria (10:00), Swiss Army Knives (15:15), KoR Oudenaarde (19:45), Berghain Berlin Boasters (Saturday 16:45).

Captain Kresten Hougaard enjoyed the first experience of the new format Champions League in Sweden, but (surprisingly) feels that Malta struggled a little, despite their solid win over Helsinki and their quite astonishing victory over London.  Kresten quickly concedes that the loss of Sebastian Hedlund from the team makes their task harder in Nussloch, however he is pleased to strengthen his women’s options with the arrival of Ana Bruzgina.  No matter what side they face Kresten promises that Malta will be “fighting for every single point on offer”.  He fully expects iPro London to go undefeated in the second round and be crowned the 2017 Champions.

 

Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria – 7th – 3 points

Squad Changes – Out: Lillian Druve. In: Benjamin Hampl, Martina Meissl.
Squad in Germany: Lukas Windischberger (c), Hans Sherpa, Benjamin Hampl, Martina Meissl, Hans Van Daele.
Fixtures: Three Percent Malta Magic (10:00), Technifibre Copenhagen (14:35), iPro Sports London (19:00), Helsinki Hawks (Saturday 16:45).

For Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria captain, Lukas Windischberger it was a chastening opening round in Sweden.  After a solid opening round victory, his team tired and suffered two further defeats, something which Lukas pins on the make-up of his squad in Sweden.  “Having just three male players isn’t good for three hard fought team matches”.  Heading to Nussloch, Lukas is able to resolve this problem as he is able to call on top Swiss player, Benny Hampl, giving Lukas more options for his team make up and as a result, he is targeting a third place finish for his team, while expecting London to go all the way.

 

Helsinki Hawks – 8th – 1 points

Squad Changes – Out: None. In: Cedric Junillon, Silke Altmann
Squad in Germany: Marko Valimakl (c), Dan Busby, Margaux Randjbar, Cedric Junillon, Silke Altmann, James Watkins.
Fixtures: Swiss Army Knives (10:45), KoR Oudenaarde (15:15), Berghain Berlin Boasters (19:00), Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria (Saturday 16:45).

It was a chastening experience in Sweden for the Helsinki Hawks and their captain Marko Valimakl, especially with the early injury suffered by Margaux Randjbar, who battled on bravely despite it.  Marko however was keen to address the positives that came from the experience, with a focus on the experiences gained in these matches for Helsinki as a team.  With no wins registered in Sweden, Helsinki will be desperate to get that first win under their belt and with the addition of Cedric Junillon and Silke Altmann to the squad in Nussloch, Marko is confident that their strengthen squad will win a few in Germany.  With regards to an overall winner, Marko sticks with the pack and predicts victory for iPro London.

 

Onwards to Germany

The second round of the 2017 Champion’s League will feature four matches, with each side facing the teams they are yet to play.  With 12 points on offer for each side to claim, no side can be considered out of the running, but as it always is, points on the board matter most.  Perhaps crucially, KoR Oudenaarde have to play both the current top and second placed teams in Germany, so it is likely that their results will be crucial to final make up.  KoR play Copenhagen in the final match at 17:30 on Saturday afternoon while London faced the Swiss Army Knives at the same time, with bonus points also in play, those last 2 hours could provide some of the most intriguing Racketlon ever seen in the Champions League!

As in Sweden there will be a host of ways for you to follow the action as it unfolds through the FIR Facebook page with live videos and updates direct from the team captains.  Additionally, the FIR are aiming to run a Live Blog to help everyone follow the days events.  Further information on this will be available through the FIR Facebook page.  Finally, on Wednesday 26th July at 21:00 (CEST, 20:00 BST), there will be a Facebook Live event with the FIR Facebook page hosting a panel of experts who will discuss what we can expect in the second round and also interviews with some of the players and captains.
James Pope
UK Racketlon

The Champions League is back for the 2017 season in a new exciting format. For 2017, the Champion’s League will feature a franchise system with squads selected by captains from a pool of registered players, a move FIR President Kresten Hougaard believes will revolutionise club Racketlon. This players pool was open to all Racketlon players to enter and players will be selected by each team captain using a draft system, which will be broadcast live on Sunday 22 nd January at 18:00 GMT (19:00 CET).

 

Event Format

The 2017 Champions League will feature 8 franchise teams with each captained by a top player on the international circuit. Each team will play each other once in a league format, with 3 rounds played at the Swedish Open (24 th February) and the final 4 rounds played at the German Open (28 th July). Matches will feature 3 Men’s Singles, 1 Ladies Singles, 1 Men’s Doubles and 1 Mixed Doubles, with players having the option to play both singles and doubles.

 

Captains Corner

A new format with new franchises raises a whole host of questions, especially surrounding the draft. The pressure is on our 8 captains, they have put themselves forward and their decisions firstly at the draft on the 22 nd January, but later at both events will go a long way to securing glory or infamy in the Racketlon community for seasons to come.

Does the captain go for the big star player or look to build a team with few weaknesses? With the draft approaching, we took it upon ourselves to find out why they signed up and what they plan for Sunday’s draft.

 

Berlin Berghain Boasters (Captain: Amke Fischer)

Amke will be leading a squad with a core philosophy based around the key principles of Racketlon, achieving the perfect mix of sport and fun. The Triple B’s plan to be “Rocking it” both on and off thecourt, through a great team spirit and atmosphere. Amke expects a lot of tight matches but is demanding nothing less than victory for the Triple B’s in all encounters. Her draft tactics are focussed on a solid all round team as she expects a late pick in the first round of the draft.

 

Klosternebberg Racketlonshop Austria (Captain: Lukas Windischberger)

For their captain Lukas, the Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria franchise is all about the history. Klosterneuburg was home to the very first Racketlon team and as the winners of the 2016 Champion’s League, they desire the chance to become the first winners in this new format. To that end, Lukas believes that the key to victory is to unite a core of Austrian players, but crucially to keep open the possibility of a sport specialist to deliver a knockout blow! Fittingly, for a side with the historical ties, Lukas is looking north to Viking foes as being his main rivals for the crown. The Klosterneuburg Racketlonshop Austria franchise wish to thank the generous support of racketlonshop.at.

 

KoR Oudenaarde (Captain: Lieselot De Bleeckere)

Lieselot is aiming to bring the biggest event on the FIR tour to the Champions League with her team, KoR Oudenaarde, which as she rightly says is a brand all by itself within Racketlon. Team-wise, Lieselot believes it would be unwise to pick her team focussing on a star player, instead she wants to select a squad who will bond to ensure that her team will be pushing each other forwards and that will be her plan in the draft. She will be hoping that her team will follow the doctors’ orders and defeat all the others!

 

Technifibre Copenhagen (Captain: Morten Jaksland)

One Viking with the Austrian’s in his sight is Morten Jaksland, captain of the Tecnifibre Copenhagen team. Morten is also aware of his history as he arrived to Racketlon at the time of peak Austria/Denmark competition (with Denmark dominating in the recent World and European team championships). Morten is a big fan of the team format, enjoying the opportunity to take the (usually) solo nature of Racketlon and make it a team event. He believes in the importance of strong team spirit and will be basing his squad mentality on this as he aims to lead Tecnifibre Copenhagen to victory (especially over the Austrians!). Within the draft, he is focussing on a strong consistent team across the board, but particularly players with good doubles skills as he feels doubles will be crucial to success within this event. Tecnifibre Copenhagen are grateful for the backing of Tecnifibre Denmark and FK Nordic Sports.

 

Three Percent Malta Magic (Captain: Kresten Hougaard)

Kresten see’s this team as a way to build up the profile of Racketlon in Malta, who are the newest FIR approved member after the AGM in November 2016. The Magic will be going for the overall win and Kresten is aiming to select a squad from the draft with the grit, determination and fighting spirit that is synonymous with Malta. Victory for Three Percent Malta Magic could mean more than just a trophy for their captain, but also act as a catalyst for developing Maltese Racketlon further. The team are grateful for the backing of Three Percent Sport Event Management.

 

Helsinki Hawks (Captain: Marko Valimaki)

Marko also believes this is a great way to build something new in the Racketlon community and was keen to get involved straight away. In the draft Marko is looking for a solid team who will help each other develop through coaching during the event. For the Finnish team it is a shame that their natural rivals, Sweden, are merely hosts for the event, and so is turning his sights to their nearest rivals, the Danes. The Helsinki Hawks wish to thank their main sponsor, Flow Drinks, a natural sports drink from Finland.

 

Swiss Army Knifes (Captain: Nicole Eisler)

Nicole’s motivation is all about helping the development of the sport she loves, and as she is passionate about team Racketlon, it really was an easy decision for her to make. For the draft she is keeping it simple, focussing on player’s world rankings and her intuition to help her select her squad. Her approach may seem laid back, but Nicole is a fierce competitor and her team will be anything but laid back on the court.

 

iPro London (Captain: Duncan Stahl)

Finally, we come to the iPro London team and the brains behind the new Champion’s League format in their captain Duncan Stahl. The motivation behind both the revamp and the iPro London team for Duncan is ensuring the UK has representation within the Champion’s League given how many British players feature on the World Tour these days. While Duncan is very public about the revamp, he is very cagey about the draft, fearing that revealing his secrets to the public will lead to other captains stealing his plans. He was willing to reveal he has entrusted data analytics and statistical insights to ensure he has the lowdown on the best picks for him in each round of the draft, especially with respect to how they match as potential doubles pairings. As for the result, well only one will do for Duncan, he wants to bring the Champion’s League title to Britain for the first time.

 

The Draft

We have heard from the captains with their tactics, but how will the draft work? The draft will consist of five rounds, with each team captain getting to pick one player from the player’s pool, resulting in squads of 6 players. The order of each captain’s pick changes in each round, to ensure that the selection is evenly distributed. Captains are free to pick any available player they wish from the player’s pool, but they must ensure that they meet the minimum team requirements of four players with one women for both* the Swedish and German events. The player’s pool has attracted 84 players (57 men and 27 ladies) ranging from number 2 to number 732 in the world, highlighting that the new Champion’s League really was an event that was open to all to enter. However, with most players clustering between 50 and 150 in the world choosing wisely will be key for each captain!
The draft itself takes place on Sunday 22 nd January and will be broadcast live to the Racketlon community via Facebook Live. In Denmark, Jepser Hougaard and world no.1 Jesper Ratzer will present the Draft live from 18.00 (UK time), 19.00 (CET) as each captain selects their teams.
Meanwhile in London, UK Racketlon have gathered their finest Racketlon experts and maths guru’s into one apartment to discuss and analyse the Draft as it happens, using an analytical model developed by Johnny Bispham to test how effective each captain’s pick is! Johnny will be joined by Dave Ridout, Alex Du Noyer and Jack Bishop. You’ll be able to get involved by commenting on the Facebook Live feed or by tweeting Johnny through the @ukracketlon Twitter Account. We look forward to you joining us on Sunday evening 18:00 GMT or 19:00 on the continent and sharing your thoughts on each pick.

 

* Should a squad member get injured and be unable to play in Germany resulting in a team being unable to meet these requirements, the Champions League Arbitration Panel will allocate a new player to that team that best maintains the standard of the team.

 

James Pope
Racketlon GB