compass-supported Görkem Öcal of Türkiye and Danilo Faso of Italy sensationally reached the boys’ doubles final at the U21 European Championships, held in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, from 17–21 June.

Öcal and Faso, born in 2011 and 2010 respectively, were among the youngest players in the competition, facing opponents up to five years older. They began their campaign with a straight-games victory over Elia Sharpel (Cyprus) and Gianni Koutra (Greece).

In the second round, they found themselves trailing 0:2 against the top-seeded Romanian pair, Iulian Chirita and Andrei Istrate. The compass duo staged a remarkable comeback, winning the deciding game 11:7 to complete one of the tournament’s biggest upsets.

The quarterfinals brought another dramatic encounter. Against Damian Floro and Samuel Palusek of the Czech Republic, Öcal and Faso trailed 1:2 before taking the final two games 11:9 and 11:4 to secure their place in the semi-finals.

Reaching the semi-finals guaranteed a medal, but Görkem and Danilo wanted more. In the semi-final, they defeated Connor Green (England) and Mael van Dessel (Luxembourg) in straight games to book their place in the final. There, however, Germany’s André Bertelsmeier and Wim Verdonschot proved too strong, winning 11:6, 6:11, 11:4, 11:7.

“It was a very positive mix for the two boys – balancing the enthusiasm of competing against older players with the responsibility they were able to take on,” said compass expert coach Bogdan Pugna. “They showed exactly what Europe needs right now: young players full of enthusiasm, with the confidence to perform at a high level and the desire to keep improving. At the same time, we have to remember that they are still very young and still some way from the very top.”

“I am so happy about the doubles,” said Görkem. “It was my first time playing with Danilo, and before the tournament I thought we would make a strong team, which was exactly what happened. We both fought very hard, and I would like to thank Danilo for this wonderful experience.”

Görkem and Danilo also impressed in the singles competition. Both players won all three of their matches in the opening group stage before finishing second in their respective groups in the second stage.

Görkem lost to Iulian Chirita but came through a thrilling match against Mael van Dessel. Trailing 2:3 in games, he won the final two games 13:11 and 14:12. A convincing 4:0 victory over Sweden’s Isak Alfredsson then secured his place in the main draw.

Danilo was defeated by André Bertelsmeier, who went on to win the title, but bounced back with a straight-games victory over Jakub Makara before overcoming Israel’s Eitay Shushan 11:4 in the seventh and decisive game.

In the knockout stage, Danilo faced eventual singles silver medallist Wim Verdonschot in the round of 16. He pushed the German all the way, leading 3:1 in games before narrowly losing the sixth game 10:12 and the deciding seventh game 9:11. Görkem was eliminated in the same round, losing 1:4 to Bulgaria’s Yoan Velichkov.

“Reaching the round of 16 in the singles event at such a young age is a very promising result for both boys,” said compass expert coach Bogdan Pugna. “They were the two youngest players in the competition, and both showed clear signs of improvement. Danilo came very close against Verdonschot, who ultimately showed the greater experience. Nevertheless, it was a very strong performance from Danilo.”