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Semi-final with the Swedes.

We knew it would be tough, but we didn't think the game would collapse in the third end. In the first end, after mistakes on both sides, we "pushed" the opponent to one - or "classic steal". The second end was a targeted blank and the third developed more on the middle where we held one with a vague hope of two. Anna Hasselborg was a bit worried about us giving more than one, so she played her first stone guard, which preserved our one in the ring. We then decided to risk an angle raise, which would create space for a possible two. However, it was enough to miss the right point by a few millimeters and both of our well-placed stones were knocked out, somewhat unluckily creating a situation in which the opponent suddenly had four better stones in the circle and played. The Swedes pushed even harder by placing another stone in scoring position. An almost impossible task for our team resulted in moving another Swedish stone into a better position than our only stone in the circle at that moment. The cashed six meant the end of any hopes of advancing to the finals of the well-attended tournament in Sundbyberg. We still played two more ends, but our opponent saw the development through with a brilliant wick corner guard. The disappointment of failure turned into a good feeling after a proportionate time with four wins, among others against the participants of Group A of the European Championships. The third place overall is a promise for the upcoming 2024 European Championships in Ostersund, Sweden. And congratulations to the Czech juniors on their third place in the Oslo EJCT tournament, which took place on the same date.

rn

photo: team after the match with Estonia - Špundová, Zelingrová, Baudyšová, Müllernová