The first of the two low-threshold international EGCA Grand Prix tournaments of 2026 was held last weekend in Espoo, Finland. The tournament was organised by local club Old Power, with Nerijus Montvydas from Lithuania representing the EGCA. The tournament took place at Leppävaaran Sports Hall.
The tournament organisers would like to thank every team member, referee, volunteer, livestream commentator and spectator, both at the venue and watching the livestream, for an outstanding weekend of goalball.
This article rounds up the highlights from the court throughout the weekend.
All tournament results and statistics can be found here.
DEBUTANTS GOALBALL KLUB ODENSE AND WINCHESTER GC IMPRESS IN THE GROUP STAGE
Eight teams from five different countries took part in the tournament, with a total of 37 players competing. No fewer than three clubs made their Grand Prix debut. The teams were divided into two groups of four, with the top two teams in each group advancing to the semi-finals.
In Group A, Danish debutants Goalball Klub Odense topped a highly competitive group after securing two wins. Their campaign, however, began with a 12–6 defeat against hosts Old Power.
On the opening day, Dutch side USV Hercules and Spain’s Aragon GC shared the points after an exciting 8–8 draw. The point proved crucial for both teams, as both subsequently lost to Goalball Klub Odense while defeating Old Power, leaving the two sides battling for the second semi-final spot.
USV Hercules looked set to miss out on the semi-finals and medal matches on goal difference. However, in their final group match against Goalball Klub Odense, the Dutch side scored the goals they needed during the final minute, with Ronald Klaver leading the charge. Hercules eventually finished two goals ahead of Aragon on goal difference to claim the second semi-final spot.
Group B saw two teams stand out from the rest. Winchester GC from Great Britain, who had won the prestigious Malmö Open earlier in the spring, continued their impressive form on the international stage by winning all three of their group matches. They finished with an impressive goal difference of 34–13 (+21).
Finnish side Näpäjä were equally clear in second place. They comfortably outperformed fellow Finnish side Aisti Sport and Spanish debutants Goalball Navarra, although they suffered a heavy defeat against Winchester. Goalball Navarra finished third in the group after beating Aisti Sport 9–7.
WINCHESTER AND NÄPÄJÄ MARCH INTO THE FINAL
The first semi-final began with Winchester GC in complete control against USV Hercules. By half-time, the British side had built a commanding 7–2 lead.
Experienced Dutch coach Bas Spaans managed to rally his team during the half time, and the second half ended 1–1. Winchester nevertheless progressed comfortably to the final with an 8–3 victory.
Winchester’s goals were shared equally between Devante Claridge and Conall Moore, with four goals apiece.
The second semi-final was dominated by Näpäjä in the opening half, which the Finnish side won 8–2.
Early in the second half, however, something changed at the Näpäjä end of the court, and Odense fought their way back into the contest, reducing the deficit to just two goals at 6–8.
Näpäjä’s powerful attacking duo Aleksi Aittola and Oskari Nyström responded by restoring the team’s advantage, and Näpäjä eventually secured their place in the final with a 12–7 victory. Aittola and Nyström both scored six goals in the semi-final.
GOALBALL NAVARRA PREVAIL IN THE SPANISH CLASH AS OLD POWER WIN THE FINNISH DERBY
The final day of the tournament began with a 7th–8th place match between the two Finnish sides, Old Power and Aisti Sport.
Old Power won the highest-scoring match of the tournament, putting an impressive 18–9 on the scoreboard.
Young Old Power player Ali Reza Ahmadi led the scoring for the hosts with six goals, taking his tournament tally to 15. Aisti Sport’s goals were scored by father Jarno Saapunki, who scored five, and son Lauri Saapunki, who added four.
The 5th–6th place match saw Spanish sides Goalball Navarra and Aragon GC go head-to-head.
A closely contested first half ended 3–3, but Navarra pulled away after the break to claim a convincing 13–5 victory. All five Navarra players found the back of the net during the match.
Navarra’s leading scorer throughout the tournament was Aritz Huarte with 18 goals, while Aragon’s top scorer was Ruben Moreno, who finished with 13.
WINCHESTER GC CLAIM THE TITLE AS HERCULES TAKE BRONZE
Goalball Klub Odense made a dream start to the bronze medal match, racing into a 3–0 lead. Once again, however, USV Hercules managed to regroup and fight their way back into the match. Odense still held a 4–2 lead at half-time.
The second half was a completely different story, as Hercules produced a dominant performance. Their defensive play was virtually flawless, while Ronald Klaver and Corne Speksnijder found the net at regular intervals.
Hercules eventually won the second half 9–0, securing an 11–4 victory and the bronze medal.
Ronald Klaver finished as the tournament’s second-highest scorer with 23 goals. Odense’s leading scorer was Norwegian Aasmund Kjellstadt, who finished with 15 goals.
The final began with Winchester in control, as the British side opened up a 3–0 lead in the first half. Näpäjä managed to pull one goal back before the half-time whistle to make it 3–1 at the break.
Early in the second half, Näpäjä reduced the deficit to just one goal. Winchester’s formidable Claridge–Harmer–Moore trio then took control of the match and secured the victory.
Winchester went unbeaten throughout the entire weekend, with their starting trio in particular producing a highly consistent and effective performance from game to game.
The final score was 7–4 in favour of Winchester GC.
Winchester’s wingers Claridge and Moore finished the tournament with 21 and 19 goals respectively. Center player Patrick Harmer was voted the tournament’s Most Valuable Player by the participating teams.
The tournament’s top scorer came from Näpäjä. Aleksi Aittola found the net no fewer than 30 times during the weekend, comfortably claiming the tournament’s top-scorer title.
The second EGCA Grand Prix tournament of 2026 will take place from 23–25 October in Thessaloniki, Greece.