The Turkish women's badminton team is gearing up to secure its inaugural medal at the European Team Championships, scheduled from Feb. 14-18.
This 9th edition of the European Team Badminton Championships will unfold in Poland's Lodz.
Comprising Neslihan Yiğit Arın, Özge Bayrak Bağcı, Betül Söner, Bengisu Erçetin, Nazlıcan Inci, Cansu Erçetin, Yasemen Bektaş and Zehra Erdem, the national team will mark its sixth appearance in the tournament.
The star-studded Turkish squad will lock horns with opponents in Group 1, including Denmark, the most successful team in the tournament's history with six championships under their belt, the third-placed team from the previous championship, France, and the host nation, Poland.
Meanwhile, Spain, Netherlands, Scotland and Germany will battle it out in Group 2.
As the team fine-tunes its preparations in Ankara, head coach Barış Boyar, along with athletes Bayrak, Erçetin, and Inci, shared their thoughts with Anadolu Agency (AA) ahead of the tournament.
Expressing the challenge ahead, Boyar acknowledged the tough draw, saying: "Denmark, as you know, is the reigning European champion, and their perspective on badminton differs significantly. We've competed against Denmark in junior categories, and now we aim to replicate that success at the senior level. We believe in our ability to advance from the group stage and are steadfastly pursuing that goal. If our players perform at their best, we can achieve a remarkable feat for our country."
He also emphasized the team's aspiration to mirror individual successes in the team format, stating, "Yiğit and Özge Bayrak have secured a European bronze at the senior level. We aspire to replicate this success in the team rankings for Türkiye. Our primary aim is to secure a top-four finish, followed by advancing to the final. Unfortunately, we have not secured any team medals at the senior level in our history. Our sole motivation now is to clinch that inaugural medal for our nation."
Özge Bayrak Bağcı, who previously won an individual medal at the European Championships, expressed determination for the team to succeed despite tough opponents like Denmark and France.
She aims to advance from the group stage and secure a podium finish, hoping to replicate her 2014 achievement of being the first Turkish woman to win a European medal in singles, this time as part of a team effort.
Erçetin and İnci, young talents on the team, are also eagerly preparing for the championships.
Erçetin, who trained in Erzincan before the camp, emphasized her dedication to training twice daily.
Her immediate goal is success at the European Championships, aiming for a podium finish.
She plans to focus on the European Individual Championships and Olympic qualification tournaments afterward, with her sights set on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
İnci reflected on the challenges of 2023, noting that she and Erçetin started with zero points but have since improved.
They trained rigorously at home before the camp and are determined to succeed as a team.
Despite facing tough opponents in their group, they are motivated to achieve a historic milestone and understand that victories require effort and perseverance.
