Radio România Internațional

Tag: champions

Sports Roundup

The
Romanian athlete Andreea Grecu won the silver medal in the women’s monobob
event at the IBSF European Championships held in Altenberg, Germany. She finished
the race in 2’02”45, and was outperformed by Germany’s Laura Nolte, with
2’01”13. In the World Cup ranking in Altenberg, the first place went to
Kaillie Humphries, of the US, with 2’00”61, with Grecu coming in 6th.

The
Romanian women’s handball side CSM Bucharest qualified into the Champions’
League quarter-finals. Two legs prior to the end of the group stage, the
Romanian vice-champions are top of Group A with 21 points. Second comes the
Norwegian team Vipers Kristiansand, with 19 points. The two sides have secured
a place in the quarter-finals, given that the 3rd-ranking team, Odense
(Denmark) only have 14 points. On Sunday, CSM defeated the German team Bietigheim
27 – 25 away from home. Malin Larsen Aune (Norway) was the Romania side’s best
scorer, with 6 goals. Cristina Neagu scored 5 times and went over the threshold
of 1,000 goals in the Champions’ League.

In Group B
of the same competition, Rapid Bucharest defeated Turkey’s champions,
Kastamonu, 28 – 22. The Dutch Estavana Polman scored 6 times for the Romanian
team, followed by Eliza Buceschi with 5 goals. Top of the group is the French
side Metz, with 21 points, followed by 3 teams with 18 points each: Győr (Hungary),
Esbjerg (Denmark) and Rapid. The top 2 teams in each group will go straight
into the quarter-finals, with the teams on the 3rd, 4th,
5th and 6th places moving into the playoffs.

In the EHF
European League, SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea lost to Thüringer, in Germany, 31 – 38. The
German side tops Group D, with 6 points in 3 matches. Vâlcea comes 2nd
with 2 points, and so do 2 other teams, Paris 92 (France) and Vác (Hungary).

We wrap up
with news from football. In the 22nd leg of the Romanian Super
League, Universitatea Cluj Friday beat FC Voluntari 2-1, and Rapid Bucharest
defeated Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe 3-0. On Saturday, CS Mioveni won at home against
Petrolul Ploieşti 1-0, and FC Botoşani defeated Universitatea Craiova 1-0 at
home. On Sunday, FC U Craiova drew at home against UTA Arad (1-1), and FCSB won
1-0 against Hermannstadt in Sibiu. Before this leg, Farul Constanta was first
placed in the ranking, with 45 points, followed by CFR Cluj with 44. (AMP)

23 January 2023
Athlete of the week

Handball is once again these days in the focus of attention of sports fans around the world. The mens World Championships hosted by Poland and Sweden, has brought together 32 teams, although Romania has not managed to secure a place among them.

This is why Romanian handball fans are focusing on womens competitions, which have brought more satisfaction lately for our country. For instance, both teams representing Romania in the Champions League have real chances to qualify into the competitions quarter-finals. Champions Rapid Bucharest are ranking 4th in Group B, only 2 points behind the second place that secures a place in the quarter-finals. CSM Bucharest is placed even better: they lead Group A and only need one point in the last 3 matches of the group stage to make it to the top 8 teams of the event.

On Saturday, CSM once again proved it is one of the teams entitled to claim the Champions title. Coach Adrian Vasiles students defeated the Danish champions Odense Håndbold 40 – 31. According to Agerpres, Cristina Neagu was again the best player in the Romanian team, with 10 goals scored. For her contribution to this huge success against one of the worlds best handball schools, Radio Romania International has designated Cristina Neagu “Athlete of the Week”.

Cristina Neagu was born in Bucharest on 26 August 1988. In 2006 she joined the top-tier team Rulmentul Brașov, from which she later on transferred to Oltchim Râmnicu Vâlcea. In 2010, with Oltchim, she played the finals of the Champions League. After the team dismantled, she moved to Buducnost Podgorica, with which she actually won the Champions League in 2015. Since 2017 she has been playing for CSM Bucharest. In 2010, 2015, 2016 and 2018, the International Handball Federation named her the best player in the world, making her the first in history to win this title 4 times. (AMP)

17 January 2023
Athlete of the week

Handball is once again these days in the focus of attention of sports fans around the world. The mens World Championships hosted by Poland and Sweden, has brought together 32 teams, although Romania has not managed to secure a place among them.

This is why Romanian handball fans are focusing on womens competitions, which have brought more satisfaction lately for our country. For instance, both teams representing Romania in the Champions League have real chances to qualify into the competitions quarter-finals. Champions Rapid Bucharest are ranking 4th in Group B, only 2 points behind the second place that secures a place in the quarter-finals. CSM Bucharest is placed even better: they lead Group A and only need one point in the last 3 matches of the group stage to make it to the top 8 teams of the event.

On Saturday, CSM once again proved it is one of the teams entitled to claim the Champions title. Coach Adrian Vasiles students defeated the Danish champions Odense Håndbold 40 – 31. According to Agerpres, Cristina Neagu was again the best player in the Romanian team, with 10 goals scored. For her contribution to this huge success against one of the worlds best handball schools, Radio Romania International has designated Cristina Neagu “Athlete of the Week”.

Cristina Neagu was born in Bucharest on 26 August 1988. In 2006 she joined the top-tier team Rulmentul Brașov, from which she later on transferred to Oltchim Râmnicu Vâlcea. In 2010, with Oltchim, she played the finals of the Champions League. After the team dismantled, she moved to Buducnost Podgorica, with which she actually won the Champions League in 2015. Since 2017 she has been playing for CSM Bucharest. In 2010, 2015, 2016 and 2018, the International Handball Federation named her the best player in the world, making her the first in history to win this title 4 times. (AMP)

17 January 2023
December 19, 2022

SCHENGEN The president of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola is
on a 2-day working visit to Bucharest as of today, with a support message for Romania’s
Schengen accession efforts. Today, Roberta Metsola is scheduled to have
meetings with president Klaus Iohannis, PM Nicolae Ciucă and the speakers of
the Chamber of Deputies and Senate, Marcel Ciolacu and Alina Gorghiu, and will
address a joint Parliament meeting. On Tuesday, Roberta Metsola will have talks
with young Romanians as part of an event called ‘Together we are Europe,’
organised by the European Parliament Office in Romania in a partnership with
the Law School of the University of Bucharest. According to the institution, during
their dialogue with Metsola the young participants will be able to find out
about the benefits of the European parliamentary democracy, ways to influence
European policies, why it is important for them to get involved in protecting
European democracy and how the decisions and policies of the European
Parliament impact Europeans’ day-to-day lives.

VISIT The Romanian foreign minister, Bogdan Aurescu, is on a 2-day
official visit to Chişinău, at the invitation of Moldova’s deputy PM and
minister for foreign affairs and European integration, Nicu Popescu. For 2 days,
Bogdan Aurescu will have consultations with his counterpart, will be received
by the president of the R. of Moldova Maia Sandu, and will have talks with PM Natalia
Gavriliţa and with the parliament speaker Igor Grosu. They will discuss aspects
related to countering the war of aggression waged by the Russian Federation
against Ukraine, as well as topics related to cooperation in the field of
energy security, stepping up sectoral cooperation, economic cooperation and the
assistance measures taken by Romania to the benefit of the R. of Moldova. A
major topic for discussion will be Moldova’s progress in its EU accession
efforts, after the country was granted the accession candidate status in June
2022, and Romania’s concrete support in this respect.

ENERGY EU energy ministers convene today in Brussels in an attempt
to reach an agreement on a natural gas price cap, in the context of the rise in
energy prices triggered by the war in Ukraine. Last week, they failed to reach
consensus on this topic. The participants will also try to come up with a
general approach on a proposed reduction of methane emissions in the energy
sector. The draft regulation requires oil, natural gas and coal operators to
measure, report and check methane emissions. Moreover, the EU energy ministers
will try to reach an agreement with respect to the proposed REPowerEU directive,
which modifies the EU legislation on renewable energy, energy efficiency and
the energy performance of buildings. The proposal aims to step up the use of
renewable energy. On the other hand, the Czech presidency of the EU Council
will present a report on the progress made with respect to the natural gas
package, which includes a proposed directive and a proposed regulation on
single market norms for gas from renewable sources, natural gas and hydrogen.

COMMEMORATION In Timişoara, western
Romania, events carry on marking 33 years since the anti-communist revolution
of December 1989. The events highlight the courage and sacrifice of the
Revolution heroes, and the need for the younger generations to carry on the
spirit of freedom. After the marches, religious services, exhibitions, film
screenings and roundtables organised in the previous days, today a pilgrimage
will be held at the monuments making up the Revolution Memorial. Short reels made
by young artists will also be screened in schools, and the traditional Rockford
revolution festival is also scheduled for today. Also today, the members of
the bereaved families are leaving for Bucharest to retrace the route on which
the bodies of 43 revolution participants from Timisoara were sent for
incineration. The events devoted to the 33 years since the Revolution will
culminate on Tuesday, December 20, Victory Day, when Timişoara was declared the
first city free of communism in Romania. The uprising against the communist
regime in Romania began in Timişoara on December 16, 1989 and spread to
Bucharest and other cities in the country. Over 1,000 people died and some
3,000 were wounded in the clashes that took place on that occasion.

FOOTBALL Argentina is the world’s new football champion. In the
final of the Qatar tournament on Sunday, Argentina defeated the previous
champions, France, after penalty shootouts. This is the 3rd world
championship won by the South Americans, after the title in 1978 and the one in
1986. The next world championship, held in 2026, will be hosted jointly by the
US, Canada and Mexico. (AMP)

19 December 2022
October 23, 2022 UPDATE

NATO Spain is going
to send F-18 and Eurofighter jets to Romania and Bulgaria, to help strengthen
NATO’s eastern flank in the context of the war in Ukraine. According to Radio
Romania’s correspondent in Madrid, the aircraft, pilots and relevant auxiliary
and maintenance personnel will reach the Feteşti air base in the south of
Romania on December 1, and will be stationed there until the end of March 2023.
Currently stationed in Zaragoza, they will monitor air space in the region and
take part in training missions. This is Spain’s response to the Allied request
for an enhanced contribution to NATO’s prevention capability, the Spanish
defence ministry said, and added that Spain has already installed a long-range
air surveillance radar in Schitu, Constanţa County, operational since October
17 and serviced by 38 troops.

BORDER Romania’s
border police announced that over 97,000 people entered Romania on Saturday, of
whom more than 9,500 were Ukrainian nationals, up 15.6% since the previous day.
According to current data, over 2.6 million Ukrainian citizens have entered
Romania since February 10, and nearly 4,400 of them have applied for asylum
here.

NRRP Romania is
set to receive EUR 2.6 bln in the coming days under the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan, to be channelled into the country’s economic recovery. The
funds are transferred after the European Commission authorised the payment of
the first instalments of the non-reimbursable aid and loan components. Romania submitted
the first payment request in May, after meeting the targets and benchmarks for
the 4th quarter of 2021. In September, the European Commission’s assessment of
these targets was approved and submitted to the Economic and Financial
Committee, which also approved it. The Romanian minister for investment and
European projects Marcel Boloş believes this is just the beginning of a long
road, which, if successfully completed, will translate into investments in
motorways, railways, schools and hospitals. The next payment request will
amount to EUR 3.2 bln, for which over 50 targets will have to be met, related
to the first half of this year. Romania may access a total of nearly EUR 30 bln
under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, of which it has already
received 2 pre-financing instalments amounting to a rough EUR 3.8 bln.

COAL Romania has
increased its coal output to mitigate the energy crunch. The amounts extracted
in the first 8 months of the year went up 1.7% and imports rose by 13.5%, the
National Statistics Institute reports. The National Strategy and Forecast
Commission estimates for this year a coal output 10% higher than in 2021 and a
2.8% rise in imports. For 2023, the Commission forecasts an 8% increase in
output.

CHINA The Chinese
president Xi Jinping was re-elected on Sunday as leader of the ruling Communist
Party, thus becoming China’s strongest leader since Mao Zedong, the founder of
the Chinese communist regime, international news agencies report. Xi Jinping was
appointed for a 3rd five-year term in office by a largely reshuffled Central
Committee, and is very likely to be re-elected president as well in March. ‘China cannot develop without the world, and the world also
needs China,’ he said, and praised what he called the two miracles achieved
by his country-rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Xi
Jinping appointed many of his close allies in the Standing Committee, a 7-member
group in power in China. The all-powerful Politburo includes no women among its
members for the first time in 25 years.

HANDBALL The
Romanian women’s handball champions, Rapid Bucharest, Sunday defeated Storhamar Handball Elite,
of Norway, 27-25, in a home match in Champions’ League Group B. Rapid remain
undefeated after 6 matches in Group B. Their next game is scheduled on December
3, away from home, against handball powerhouse Gyori Audi ETO KC. (AMP)

23 October 2022
October 23, 2022

MILITARY The
first shipment of French military equipment to join the NATO battle group deployed
to Cincu, in central Romania, reaches the country on Sunday, the defence
ministry announced. A second convoy, comprising a Leclerc main battle tank
company, is set to arrive in November. The NATO Battle Group Forward Presence
in Romania (BGFP) was created in May by transforming the Allied multinational
elements of the NATO Response Force deployed to our country. Upon France’s
proposal to take over the framework-nation role, the French battalion deployed
to Romania, considered the Spearhead of the Very High Readiness Joint Task
Force (VJTF), built up the BGFP on our national territory by integrating, on
rotational basis, Belgian and Dutch troops. BGFP contributes to the increase of
the Romanian military cooperation with France and, implicitly, to the consolidation
of the Euro-Atlantic space security on the Eastern Flank. Cooperation with the
strategic partners and the deployment of relevant combat structures on national
territory contribute to the increase of defence and deterrence capacity in the
context of the Ukraine war and the Black Sea region crisis, the defence
ministry explains.

BORDER Romania’s
border police announced that over 97,000 people entered Romania on Saturday, of
whom more than 9,500 were Ukrainian nationals, up 15.6% since the previous day.
According to current data, over 2.6 million Ukrainian citizens have entered
Romania since February 10, and nearly 4,400 of them have applied for asylum
here.

NRRP Romania is
set to receive EUR 2.6 bln in the coming days under the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan, to be channelled into the country’s economic recovery. The
funds are transferred after the European Commission authorised the payment of
the first instalments of the non-reimbursable aid and loan components. Romania submitted
the first payment request in May, after meeting the targets and benchmarks for
the 4th quarter of 2021. In September, the European Commission’s assessment of
these targets was approved and submitted to the Economic and Financial
Committee, which also approved it. The Romanian minister for investment and
European projects Marcel Boloş believes this is just the beginning of a long
road, which, if successfully completed, will translate into investments in
motorways, railways, schools and hospitals. The next payment request will
amount to EUR 3.2 bln, for which over 50 targets will have to be met, related
to the first half of this year. Romania may access a total of nearly EUR 30 bln
under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, of which it has already
received 2 pre-financing instalments amounting to a rough EUR 3.8 bln.

COAL Romania has
increased its coal output to mitigate the energy crunch. The amounts extracted
in the first 8 months of the year went up 1.7% and imports rose by 13.5%, the
National Statistics Institute reports. The National Strategy and Forecast
Commission estimates for this year a coal output 10% higher than in 2021 and a
2.8% rise in imports. For 2023, the Commission forecasts an 8% increase in
output.

CHINA The Chinese
president Xi Jinping was re-elected on Sunday as leader of the ruling Communist
Party, thus becoming China’s strongest leader since Mao Zedong, the founder of
the Chinese communist regime, international news agencies report. Xi Jinping was
appointed for a 3rd five-year term in office by a largely reshuffled Central
Committee, and is very likely to be re-elected president as well in March. ‘China cannot develop without the world, and the world also
needs China,’ he said, and praised what he called the two miracles achieved
by his country-rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Xi
Jinping appointed many of his close allies in the Standing Committee, a 7-member
group in power in China. The all-powerful Politburo includes no women among its
members for the first time in 25 years.

HANDBALL The
Romanian women’s handball champions, Rapid Bucharest, play at home today
against Storhamar, of Norway, in a Champions’ League Group B match. Rapid is
3rd in the ranking, after the Hungarian side Gyor and the French side Metz. On Saturday, vice-champions CSM Bucharest
lost their first game in the group, away from home, to defending champions
Vipers Kristiansand of Norway, 35-29. CSM ranks 3rd in Group A, after the
German side Bietigheim and Kristiansand. (AMP)

23 October 2022
October 22, 2022

COVID The European Centre for Disease
Prevention and Control has cautioned against the spread of a new Omicron
subvariant, which is expected to increase the number of infections in Europe,
the EFE Agency has reported. Preliminary surveys conducted in Asia have shown
the aforementioned subvariant could evade the immune response of the human
body. Andrea Ammon, director of the aforementioned institution has called on European
states to remain vigilant about the spread of the new subvariant and monitor the
number of infections as well as the hospital treatment of patients. According
to the same institution, raising the vaccination rate remains a priority, and
that risk groups, such as the elderly and the people with comorbidities, need
additional booster doses.

TENNIS Romania’s best tennis player and
two-times major winner, Simona Halep, has been provisionally suspended after
testing positive for a banned anti-anemia blood-booster called roxadustat at
the latest edition of the US Open. The world’s former number one, Halep
described the ban as ‘the biggest shock of her life’ and denied knowingly
taking any banned substance. Throughout my whole career, the idea of cheating
never even crossed my mind once, as it is totally against all the values I have
been educated with. Facing such an unfair situation, I feel completely confused
and betrayed, the athlete wrote on Twitter. The 31 year old Romanian athlete
and winner of the Roland Garros tournament in 2018, says that her fight was not
about ‘titles and money’ but her honour and that she hoped the truth would
eventually come out.

PERMITS Specialised structures with the
Romanian Interior Ministry have in the past 24 hours issued 302 residence
permits for Ukrainian refugees. A total of 78 thousand such permits have been
issued since March. According to authorities in Bucharest only one Ukrainian
citizen has applied for asylum in the past 24 hours. Roughly 44 hundred
Ukrainians have applied for asylum in Romania since the beginning of the
conflict and they are benefitting from all the rights stipulated in the
national legislation. According to the same sources, 83 thousand people have
crossed the borders into Romania in the past 24 hours, out of which 93 hundred
are Ukrainian citizens.

HANDBALL Romania’s vice-champions in
women’s handball, CSM Bucharest are today playing defending champions Vipers
Kristiansand of Norway in an away match counting towards the Champions League
group A. In their previous game, CSM managed to outperform the last side in the
group’s ranking Banik Most of the Czech Republic. CSM ranks second in the group
after German side Bietigheim and before Kristiansand. Romanian champions Rapid
Bucharest is also ranking second in the Champions League’s group B after
Hungarian side Gyor. Rapid will be playing a home game against the Norwegians
of Storhamar on Sunday. Rapid comes after a draw against Buducnost Podgorica of
Montenegro.

VISIT The use by Russia of the nuclear
weapon would be ‘an act of hostility against humankind’, Japanese Prime
Minister Fumio Kishida said during his visit to Australia on Saturday, France
press reports. The Russian intimidation concerning the use of nuclear weapon is
a severe threat to the peace and security of the international community and is
absolutely unacceptable, says the leader of the only country ever hit by a
nuclear weapon. In 2023, Kishida is expected to welcome the G7 leaders in
Hiroshima, the town which was razed to the ground by an atomic bomb in 1945
when 140 thousand people died. The city of Nagasaki was also bombed three days
later. In another development, Australia and Japan on Saturday signed an agreement
on security issues aimed at offsetting China’s military power in the region.

(bill)

22 October 2022
October 10, 2022

DEFICIT In the first 8 months of the year Romania’s trade balance
deficit deepened by nearly EUR 7.4 billion, to EUR 22 billion. According to data
made public by the National Statistics Institute on Monday, exports went up
25%, to EUR 60.3 billion, and imports rose by 31%, to roughly EUR 83 billion.
Vehicles and transport equipment, as well as other manufactured products,
accounted for a large part of Romania’s foreign trade. Over 70% of the total
imports and exports involved the EU market.

PILGRIMAGE
The north-eastern Romanian city of Iaşi is hosting these days a traditional
pilgrimage devoted to St. Paraskeva, commemorated on the 14 October and viewed
as the patron saint of Moldavia. Thousands of Orthodox believers from around
the country and from abroad have already come to pray at St. Paraskeva’s relics,
hosted by the Metropolitan Cathedral. The Iași pilgrimage is the largest
Orthodox pilgrimage in the country, with around 300,000 people expected to
attend this year.

REFUGEES Romania is better prepared to
receive Ukrainian refugees, although there is no indication that their number
may increase, the state secretary with the interior ministry Raed Arafat
said in Suceava, north-eastern Romania. On Sunday the Romanian official
travelled to the Suceava hub for a donation ceremony also attended by the
French ambassador to Bucharest, Laurence Auer, and the Ukrainian ambassador in
Romania, Ihor Prokopchuk. Fifteen fire engines and ambulances were brought to
the hub by 40 members of the French civil protection agency, and further
materials will reach Suceava in a few days. The largest French aid batch for
Ukraine, consisting in over 1 tonne of pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs and
intervention vehicles, has reached the Black Sea port of Constanţa Sud-Agigea.

UKRAINE
Several blasts were reported this
morning in the Ukrainian capital city and in Lviv, Ternopil and Dnipro. The
Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu announced that Romanian diplomatic
staff in Kyiv is safe, although a missile hit 850m from the Romanian embassy
office. The Romanian official firmly condemns Russian missile strikes on
civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities as a blatant violation of
international human rights law. Meanwhile, Russia’s Security Council convenes today at president
Vladimir Putin’s request, after Saturday’s
partial destruction of the Kerch bridge connecting Russia to Crimea. According
to Putin, this was a terrorist act committed by Ukraine. The Ukrainian
authorities neither confirmed nor denied their involvement in the incident. In
Washington, the White House declined comments on the topic and mentioned it
would continue to supply weapons to Ukraine. Also today, the UN is holding an
emergency session to discuss Russia’s recent annexation of 4 other Ukrainian
provinces. Radio Romania’s correspondent in the US mentions that the UN General
Assembly condemned the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

AIRPORT As of today, the Bucharest Otopeni Airport is upgrading its baggage
handling systems at the Departures terminal, the Bucharest National Airport
Company has announced. Until next August, the number of check-in counters will
be significantly reduced, and waiting time will be longer. The current baggage
handling system is more than 20 years old, and its replacement requires an over
EUR 20 million investment. After the works, the processing capacity will be 40%
higher, and 12 counters for passengers to drop off their own baggage without
resorting to a check-in counter will also be available, the Company announced.

VETERINARY EU experts are assessing these days the veterinary services
at the border check points Stamora Moraviţa, in Timiş County, on the border
with Serbia, and at the Bucharest Henri Coandă Airport, the National Veterinary
and Food Safety Agency announced. The assessment comes in the context of
Romania’s prospective Schengen area accession. The Czech presidency of the EU
Council announced last week that in the December summit it will seek a
unanimous decision on Romania’s and Bulgaria’s accession to the passport-free
travel area.

SPORTS The Romanian team CSM Bucharest defeated
the Dutch side Odense Handbold, 31-27 (16-13), on Sunday, away from home, in
Group A of the women’s handball Champions’ League. Undefeated in 4 matches, the
Romanian team is to play next at home on 16 October, against DHK Banik Most. In
turn, CS Rapid Bucharest won 34-32 (19-14) against the Danish team Team
Esbjerg, in a home game on Sunday in Group B of the same competition. This was
the 3rd win for the Romanian champions in the competition. Rapid will
play next against Buducnost Podgorica, away from home, on 15 October. (AMP)

10 October 2022
Sports Roundup

The Romanian water polo teams CSM Oradea and
Steaua Bucharest have moved up to the second qualification round of the
Champions League. CSM Oradea won all their matches in the League’s qualifier
Group B, held in Oradea: 10-7 against the Italian side Savona, 12-3 against ASA
Tel Aviv and 12-8 against Galatasaray Istanbul, finishing 1st in
their group. In the Netherlands, in qualifier Group A, Steaua defeated the host
team, Het Ravijn, 15-9, and then beat the Bosnian side Invictum Sarajevo, 29-2.
Two defeats followed: 3-10 against Vasas Budapest, of Hungary, and 11-14 against
Primorac Kotor, of Montenegro. The Romanian champions qualified into the second
round after they came out 3rd in their group.

Romania’s national team won the Carpathians
Trophy in women’s handball, held last week in the town of Bistriţa. Romania
started out with a draw against Austria, 32-all, a match in which they avoided
a defeat by scoring 2 goals in the last minute. Next came a 26-20 win against Serbia,
and in their last match manager Florentin Pera’s team defeated Spain, 25-23 and
finished top of the standings. Romania is training for the EURO 2022, a competition
scheduled to take place between 4 – 20 November in Slovenia, North Macedonia and
Montenegro. Romania is part of Group C, alongside France, the Netherlands and
North Macedonia.

This weekend saw matches counting towards
the 12th round of the Romanian football Super League. On Friday,
Universitatea Craiova drew against FC Voluntari, 1-all, while on Saturday the
other team based in Craiova, FC U, drew away from home against CS Mioveni, 2-all.
Also on Saturday, CFR Cluj won 1-0 against Petrolul Ploieşti. On Sunday,
Hermannstadt had their first defeat this season, 1-2 against Sepsi Sfântu
Gheorghe, Farul Constanţa beat UTA Arad 2-0, and in Bucharest FCSB struggled to
defeat FC Argeş, 3-2. The last 2 matches in this round were scheduled for
Monday: FC Botoşani vs Universitatea Cluj and Chindia Târgovişte vs Rapid
Bucharest. The current leaders in the ranking are Farul, with 27 points,
followed by Rapid, with 24, and Hermannstadt, with 22 points. (AMP)

3 October 2022
Sports Roundup

The Romanian water polo teams CSM Oradea and
Steaua Bucharest have moved up to the second qualification round of the
Champions League. CSM Oradea won all their matches in the League’s qualifier
Group B, held in Oradea: 10-7 against the Italian side Savona, 12-3 against ASA
Tel Aviv and 12-8 against Galatasaray Istanbul, finishing 1st in
their group. In the Netherlands, in qualifier Group A, Steaua defeated the host
team, Het Ravijn, 15-9, and then beat the Bosnian side Invictum Sarajevo, 29-2.
Two defeats followed: 3-10 against Vasas Budapest, of Hungary, and 11-14 against
Primorac Kotor, of Montenegro. The Romanian champions qualified into the second
round after they came out 3rd in their group.

Romania’s national team won the Carpathians
Trophy in women’s handball, held last week in the town of Bistriţa. Romania
started out with a draw against Austria, 32-all, a match in which they avoided
a defeat by scoring 2 goals in the last minute. Next came a 26-20 win against Serbia,
and in their last match manager Florentin Pera’s team defeated Spain, 25-23 and
finished top of the standings. Romania is training for the EURO 2022, a competition
scheduled to take place between 4 – 20 November in Slovenia, North Macedonia and
Montenegro. Romania is part of Group C, alongside France, the Netherlands and
North Macedonia.

This weekend saw matches counting towards
the 12th round of the Romanian football Super League. On Friday,
Universitatea Craiova drew against FC Voluntari, 1-all, while on Saturday the
other team based in Craiova, FC U, drew away from home against CS Mioveni, 2-all.
Also on Saturday, CFR Cluj won 1-0 against Petrolul Ploieşti. On Sunday,
Hermannstadt had their first defeat this season, 1-2 against Sepsi Sfântu
Gheorghe, Farul Constanţa beat UTA Arad 2-0, and in Bucharest FCSB struggled to
defeat FC Argeş, 3-2. The last 2 matches in this round were scheduled for
Monday: FC Botoşani vs Universitatea Cluj and Chindia Târgovişte vs Rapid
Bucharest. The current leaders in the ranking are Farul, with 27 points,
followed by Rapid, with 24, and Hermannstadt, with 22 points. (AMP)

3 October 2022
Sports Weekend

Steaua Bucharest
started out on the right foot in Group 1 of the Water Polo Champions League
qualifiers, held in Het Ravijn, the Netherlands. Romania’s champions defeated the
host team ZPC Het Ravijn 15-9. In another game in the group, Primorac Kotor, of
Montenegro, defeated Invictum Sarajevo, of Bosnia Herzegovina, 36-4. The group
also includes the Hungarian side Vasas Budapest. Steaua is to play 2 matches on
Saturday, against Invictum Sarajevo and Vasas Budapest, while on Sunday they
will take on Primorac Kotor. The top 2 teams in the ranking qualify into the
next stage of the competition, while the other teams will play in the EuroCup.

Romania’s
women’s handball team drew against Austria, 32-all on Thursday, the first day
of the Carpathians Trophy, a competition hosted by the Romanian town of
Bistriţa. In the debut match for manager Florentin Pera, the Romanian national
team avoided a defeat with 2 goals scored in the very last minute of the game. Cristina
Neagu was Romania’s top scorer, with 11 goals. In the first match of the day,
Serbia beat Spain 30 – 28. Two matches are scheduled for Friday: Austria vs.
Spain and Romania vs. Serbia. Romania is preparing for the EURO 2022, a
competition to be held in Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro this
November. The Romanian team will play in Group C, against the Netherlands, France
and North Macedonia.

Matches are
scheduled this weekend in the 12th round of Romania’s football Superleague.
Universitatea Craiova take on FC Voluntari on Friday, while on Saturday FC
Mioveni play against FC U Craiova at home, and CFR Cluj are facing Petrolul
Ploieşti. On Sunday, FC Hermannstadt play against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe, Farul
Constanţa against UTA, and FCSB against FC Argeş, on the National Arena in
Bucharest. On Monday, FC Botoşani take on Universitatea Cluj, and Chindia Târgovişte
on Rapid Bucharest. At the moment, Farul and Rapid top the charts with 24
points, followed by Hermannstadt, with 22. (AMP)

30 September 2022
Sports Weekend

Steaua Bucharest
started out on the right foot in Group 1 of the Water Polo Champions League
qualifiers, held in Het Ravijn, the Netherlands. Romania’s champions defeated the
host team ZPC Het Ravijn 15-9. In another game in the group, Primorac Kotor, of
Montenegro, defeated Invictum Sarajevo, of Bosnia Herzegovina, 36-4. The group
also includes the Hungarian side Vasas Budapest. Steaua is to play 2 matches on
Saturday, against Invictum Sarajevo and Vasas Budapest, while on Sunday they
will take on Primorac Kotor. The top 2 teams in the ranking qualify into the
next stage of the competition, while the other teams will play in the EuroCup.

Romania’s
women’s handball team drew against Austria, 32-all on Thursday, the first day
of the Carpathians Trophy, a competition hosted by the Romanian town of
Bistriţa. In the debut match for manager Florentin Pera, the Romanian national
team avoided a defeat with 2 goals scored in the very last minute of the game. Cristina
Neagu was Romania’s top scorer, with 11 goals. In the first match of the day,
Serbia beat Spain 30 – 28. Two matches are scheduled for Friday: Austria vs.
Spain and Romania vs. Serbia. Romania is preparing for the EURO 2022, a
competition to be held in Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro this
November. The Romanian team will play in Group C, against the Netherlands, France
and North Macedonia.

Matches are
scheduled this weekend in the 12th round of Romania’s football Superleague.
Universitatea Craiova take on FC Voluntari on Friday, while on Saturday FC
Mioveni play against FC U Craiova at home, and CFR Cluj are facing Petrolul
Ploieşti. On Sunday, FC Hermannstadt play against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe, Farul
Constanţa against UTA, and FCSB against FC Argeş, on the National Arena in
Bucharest. On Monday, FC Botoşani take on Universitatea Cluj, and Chindia Târgovişte
on Rapid Bucharest. At the moment, Farul and Rapid top the charts with 24
points, followed by Hermannstadt, with 22. (AMP)

30 September 2022
SPORTS ROUNDUP

In Group A of the
Women’s Volleyball European Championships qualifiers, Romania defeated Israel
away from home on Sunday, 3-2. In another game in the same group, Croatia beat Faeroe
Islands, 3-0. In the final group ranking, Romania comes 1st with 14 points,
followed by Croatia, also with 14 points, Israel (8 points) and Faeroe Islands
with 0 points. Romania and Croatia have qualified to the final tournament hosted
next year by Belgium, Estonia, Germany and Italy.

The Women’s Handball Champions League kicked
off this weekend, with good news for the participating Romanian teams, which
got off on the right foot. In Group A, on Sunday CSM Bucharest played at home against
the Slovenian side Ljubljana, and won cu 30-28. In a Group B match on Saturday,
Rapid defeated Lokomotiv Zagreb of Croatia away from home, 31-27.

On Saturday, in the
Eastern Conference of the Rugby Europe Super Cup, the Romanian Wolves played
their first match at home, against the Israeli side Tel Aviv Heat. The guests
won 25-20. In the other game in the conference, the Georgian side Black Lion defeated
another Georgian team, Batumi, 29-3.

In the 10th
round of the Romanian football League One, on Friday FC Botoșani lost at home
to UTA Arad 1-2. On Saturday, Chindia Târgoviște lost to Sepsi Sf. Gheorghe 1-2,
FC Hermannstadt defeated Petrolul Ploiești 2-1 and FCU Craiova beat Rapid Bucharest
1-0. On Sunday, Farul Constanța beat FC Argeș 3-0 and CFR Cluj defeated CSU
Craiova 2-0. The round concludes on Monday night with games pitting CS Mioveni against
Universitatea Cluj and FCSB against FC Voluntari. Farul tops the current
ranking with 21 points, followed by Rapid (also 21) and FC Hermannstadt (19). (AMP)

12 September 2022
SPORTS ROUNDUP

In Group A of the
Women’s Volleyball European Championships qualifiers, Romania defeated Israel
away from home on Sunday, 3-2. In another game in the same group, Croatia beat Faeroe
Islands, 3-0. In the final group ranking, Romania comes 1st with 14 points,
followed by Croatia, also with 14 points, Israel (8 points) and Faeroe Islands
with 0 points. Romania and Croatia have qualified to the final tournament hosted
next year by Belgium, Estonia, Germany and Italy.

The Women’s Handball Champions League kicked
off this weekend, with good news for the participating Romanian teams, which
got off on the right foot. In Group A, on Sunday CSM Bucharest played at home against
the Slovenian side Ljubljana, and won cu 30-28. In a Group B match on Saturday,
Rapid defeated Lokomotiv Zagreb of Croatia away from home, 31-27.

On Saturday, in the
Eastern Conference of the Rugby Europe Super Cup, the Romanian Wolves played
their first match at home, against the Israeli side Tel Aviv Heat. The guests
won 25-20. In the other game in the conference, the Georgian side Black Lion defeated
another Georgian team, Batumi, 29-3.

In the 10th
round of the Romanian football League One, on Friday FC Botoșani lost at home
to UTA Arad 1-2. On Saturday, Chindia Târgoviște lost to Sepsi Sf. Gheorghe 1-2,
FC Hermannstadt defeated Petrolul Ploiești 2-1 and FCU Craiova beat Rapid Bucharest
1-0. On Sunday, Farul Constanța beat FC Argeș 3-0 and CFR Cluj defeated CSU
Craiova 2-0. The round concludes on Monday night with games pitting CS Mioveni against
Universitatea Cluj and FCSB against FC Voluntari. Farul tops the current
ranking with 21 points, followed by Rapid (also 21) and FC Hermannstadt (19). (AMP)

12 September 2022
RRI Sports Club

Romania’s football champions, CFR Cluj, Tuesday played their first match in the Champions League qualifier stage. The team coached by Dan Petrescu played away from home against the Armenian champions, FC Pyunik Yerevan. The match ended in a blank draw.

The Cluj side had the game under control and missed a lot of opportunities to score, especially in the first half. But they came closest to scoring in the second half of the game, on 73 min, when the Croatian player Gabriel Debeljuh sent the ball straight into the crossbar of the Armenians’ goal.

In fact, the Croatian footballer was the most dangerous striker of CFR, working well with the other member of his team’s attack flank, Ciprian Deac. The Romanian team were clearly in advantage, with 16-5 shots and 5-1 shots on goal. Moreover, CFR had as many as 11 corner kicks, as against 5 for Pyunik, however none of them managed to threaten the Armenian goal.

The return leg of the match between CFR Cluj and FC Pyunik Yerevan is scheduled for next Wednesday in Cluj-Napoca. If they win, CFR will move up into the second preliminary round of the Champions League, and will play against the winner of the match between Dudelange Luxembourg and KF Tirana of Albania.

CFR have bitter memories when it comes to Dudelange, against which they played in the 2018 – 2019 Europa League qualifiers and which beat them twice, 2-0 in Luxembourg and 3-2 in Cluj.

Until the second leg of the match against FC Pyunik Yerevan, CFR are scheduled to go to Arad, to play for Romania’s football Super Cup against Cup winners Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. The latter side plays this final for the first time in history, while CFR have 4 such trophies already, won in 2009, 2010, 2018 and 2020. The team also lost 4 other finals. (AMP)

6 July 2022