Cypriot athletes continue to impress at the 20th Mediterranean Games. The third day of competition brought three more medals for the Cyprus Olympic Committee delegation: a silver medal in Canoe/Kayak for Savvia Chatzicharalambous and two bronze medals in Shooting for Konstantia Nikolaou and Nikola Vasileiou, bringing Cyprus’s overall medal tally to two silver and two bronze medals. There were also excellent performances in Swimming, while the first-ever participation of the National Handball Team was historic, as was the first victory and qualification in Padel.

Canoe/Kayak

The biggest achievement for Cypriot Canoe/Kayak came from Savvia Chatzicharalambous, who won the silver medal in the K1 500m individual event. She fought until the very last metre, and the very last second, to secure second place, finishing behind only Gintaudou Dr. Prito of Portugal. She finished ahead of the two Serbian athletes, Horvat and Stanojev, with the time differences between them less than half a second, as the three boats fighting for positions 2–4 crossed the finish line extremely close to one another.

Shortly after receiving her medal, the silver medallist said:

“My first feeling was definitely joy because this is my first medal at such a major competition, and it was something I really wanted. I also felt satisfied because I felt very good during the race and I believe I gave my best. This medal means a lot to me and is certainly a great motivation to continue strongly. Of course, the reward is not only the medal, but today was a reminder that all the hard work throughout the year was worthwhile.”

Antonis Kyriakou and Daniel Sirotin also completed their efforts with a very good performance, competing in the K2 500m Final and finishing 9th in the event. In the K1 1000m B Final, Daniel Sirotin finished first, taking 10th place overall, while Antonis Kyriakou finished fourth, placing 13th overall. Overall, Cyprus’s performance in Canoe/Kayak at the Mediterranean Games can be considered excellent and highly successful.

Shooting

Cypriot shooters excelled in both the men’s and women’s events. Nikola Vasileiou and Konstantia Nikolaou won bronze medals, while Eleftheria Anastasiou also reached the final. Together with Sotiris Antoniou, they formed an excellent team that earned widespread applause and respect.

Konstantia Nikolaou had to fight hard to qualify for the final after a difficult second day. Once there, however, she rediscovered her best form and challenged for the gold medal until the very end, eventually securing bronze.

Eleftheria Anastasiou followed the opposite path, producing an outstanding second day and entering the final in second place. She fought for a medal but eventually finished fifth.

Nikola Vasileiou secured the men’s bronze medal in a similar fashion. He made a slow start to the day and, at one point, was in danger of missing the final. Once he secured his place, however, he rediscovered his best form and also went on to win bronze. Sotiris Antoniou finished 11th out of 16 competitors.

Swimming

The day in Swimming began with two important qualifications for the finals. Kalia Antoniou qualified for the 50m Backstroke final with a time of 29.27, finishing third in her heat and seventh overall. Shortly afterwards, Maria Erokhina secured her place in the 200m Breaststroke final with a time of 2:30.37, finishing third in her heat and fourth overall.

Kalia Antoniou and her coach decided that she would withdraw from the evening final of the 50m Backstroke in order to manage her energy levels and focus on her upcoming events, where she will have strong chances of challenging for a place on the podium, particularly in the 100m Freestyle, which will take place on Monday.

Handball

History was made in Handball with the National Team’s first-ever participation in the Mediterranean Games. The Cypriot National Anthem was played in Taranto, and everyone felt proud of the team’s participation.

In the match against Algeria, the difference in strength between the two teams was known in advance, as will also be the case in the team’s next two group matches against Tunisia and Greece. Algeria won 33–24, with Cyprus putting in a very good performance, particularly in the second half.

Fencing

In the Épée event, Eirini Mavrikou and Alexandros Taliotis put in good performances but were unable to achieve a podium finish.

Alexandros Taliotis recorded one win and four defeats in the group stage, although he could have secured another victory, particularly in his opening bout, when he narrowly lost 5–4 to the Moroccan athlete. His ranking sent him up against Italy’s Filippo Armaleo in the Round of 32, where there was a clear difference in strength, resulting in his elimination and an eventual 20th-place finish.

Eirini Mavrikou made an excellent start with a 5–0 victory over the Algerian athlete, but suffered a knee injury and was consequently forced to miss her subsequent ranking matches. In the Round of 16, she faced the Turkish athlete and, despite making a strong start and taking the lead, eventually lost 15–7.

The experienced Cypriot fencing champion said of her participation:

“I injured my knee in my second bout and this affected me afterwards. Nevertheless, I qualified among the top 12 and finished the competition in 11th place. The competition was extremely difficult, as the French, Italian, Spanish and Egyptian delegations are here with Olympic medallists and world champions among their athletes.”

Padel

A major victory over Türkiye was achieved in the Mixed Doubles event by Sergeis Kyratzis and Maria Siopaha, who advanced to the quarter-finals of the competition.

The Cypriot pair defeated Türkiye’s Kocac Zeynep / Uncal Toker 2–0 (6–4, 6–2) following an excellent performance.

The Cypriot players followed their coach Pablo Bustamante’s instructions closely, applying continuous pressure on the Turkish female player. Their strategy paid off when they broke the Turkish male player’s serve at 4–4 in the first set, eventually winning it 6–4.

With their confidence boosted, they made a very strong start to the second set. Two consecutive breaks gave them an early 4–0 lead, and they went on to close out the set 6–2 and secure victory.

The result was a significant achievement for the team, marking the first victory for Cyprus in Padel at the Mediterranean Games. It was particularly meaningful for Sergeis Kyratzis, who had struggled with the weather conditions during the men’s event on the opening day, which was the main reason the team failed to qualify.

The Cypriot pair will now face a very difficult task in the quarter-finals, where they will meet the No. 1 seeds of the competition, the Portuguese duo.

Taekwondo

Nikolaos Nikolaou delivered a very strong performance in the -80kg category against Italy’s Angelo Mangione. Despite losing 1–2, he showed determination and a strong competitive spirit until the very end.

Nikolaou took the lead by winning the first round 10–2. The Italian, however, managed to turn the match around, winning the next two rounds 6–2 and 8–2.

Wrestling

Charalambos Choiras faced an extremely difficult challenge against Spain’s Iglesias Ram and was unable to seriously challenge for qualification at any stage of the bout.

The final score of 0–10 reflected the difference in strength between the two competitors.