Undefeated and champion! The French U18 men’s team did not experience the slightest defeat this week in La Rochelle during the Galea Valerio Cup. After beating Poland in the quarter-finals and Slovakia in the semi-finals (3-0 each time), the Blues defeated Belgium this Wednesday in the final (2-0, double undisputed) to become European champions by U18 teams.
The French team – five-time defending champion in the competition (since 2017) – was made up of Lucas Van Assche, Arthur Fils and Gabriel Debru from Isérois, coached by Boris Vallejo (national coach and also coach of Debru).
In the final, the French points were won, in singles, by Arthur Fils (against Alexandre Blockx) then Lucas Van Assche (against Gilles Arnaud Bailly, finalist of the last Roland-Garros juniors). Each time with difficulty: in three sets, having lost the initial round
Gabriel Debru, who was to play doubles with Fils, rested on Wednesday. But the Grenoblois had participated in previous successes, in the quarter-finals (in singles) and in the semi-finals (in doubles with Son).
He thus adds a new title to his prize list, after Roland-Garros juniors won last June, before returning to the ITF and Challenger circuits.