Peadar Sheridan captured a bronze medal in the boys U13 singles, but it was a bitter sweet medal as he was one point away from the final against Turkeys Gungdogdu. Impressive in his opening 5-man group, he won all four games and he advanced to the round of 16 where he met No.1 seed Schimdt (Bulgaria). In a pulsating encounter, Schimdt went 2-1 up in sets but the Ormeau pocket rocket stormed back with an impressive array of skills to advance to the quarterfinal on a 3-2 score line. He faced UAE’s rising star, Almusayebi, but met the Challenge with force to win 3-0. The semifinal saw Turkeys Gungdogdu blocking his path to the final. Sensational start saw him race into a 2-0 lead and 10-7 up in the third set. All changed however as an incredible comeback saw the Turkish player level it at 2-2. Sheridan again led 9-7 in the deciding set but Gungdogdu was not to be denied winning 11-7. Heartbreak for the Ormeau Star who knew he had lost a golden opportunity. Coach Conn Higgins was devasted for the Irish star but said the experience will be a great lesson in future battles ahead and another huge step on Peadar’s journey.
Impressive also was Stefan Bonchev who went on a 5-game unbeaten streak before losing out in the quarter final to Bulgarian Victor Dimitrov in the U13 event. Boris Bonchev joined the 2 boys in the U15 event. All three qualified from their opening groups to the round of 32, Peadar and Boris exited the event at this stage while Stefan went out in the round of 16. All in all some very valuable lessons learned and crucial experience gained, stated coach Conn Higgins.
