Netherlands Hails 'Best Chance' For European Success

Netherlands will host the 2005 European Team Championships at the Frans Otten Stadion in Amsterdam from 27-30 April in the belief that the country has 'the best ever chance for success'.

Teams from 21 countries will contest the 33rd Men's and 28th Women's European Championships - with England seeded to retain their titles in both events.

However, Netherlands are fourth seeds in the men's event and second seeds in the women's - and the hosts' women's squad is led by Vanessa Atkinson, who followed her success in last December's World Open Championship by winning last week's Texas Open in the US, thereby laying claim to the next world number one ranking for the first time.

"Vanessa is the in-form player on the women's tour at the moment - and if ever we had a chance of winning the women's European title, it's now!" said Tournament Director Frank van Loon, Chief Executive of the Netherlands Squash Bond.

"Staging the European Championships is an important event for our country - we may not be one of the biggest in the world but, in squash terms (ie. in number of courts), we are the seventh on the list, and we are really focussed on expanding our global position," explained van Loon, whose organisation also hosted the Women's World Team Championships in 2004.

While Netherlands have reached the women's final on six occasions since 1990, the team has always finished second best to England - who have held the title unopposed since the inaugural event in 1978. However Atkinson created the first dent in England's unblemished record in two decades when she beat England's then number one Cassie Jackman in the final of the 2004 event to reduce their victory to 2/1. Netherlands also finished as runners-up last year.

Atkinson, currently ranked two in the world, is supported in the hosts' squad by Annelize Naude (ranked 15 in the world), Karen Kronemeyer (49), Margriet Huisman (71) and Orla Noom (80) - while favourites England will feature Linda Elriani (6), Vicky Botwright (7), Jenny Tranfield (8), and Jenny Duncalf (10).

The men's squad representing the Netherlands will also be one of the strongest ever, led for the first time by 22-year-old Laurens Jan Anjema (31), with Tommy Berden (40), Lucas Buit (-), Dylan Bennett (88), Marc Reus (-) and Gabor Marges (-).

"After finishing fourth for the last three years - behind the 'big three' of England, France and Wales - we are determined to get a podium finish this year," said van Loon.

The men's event is seeded to produce the same final that has been the feature of the event since 2000, with England facing - and beating - France. England's line-up includes Lee Beachill (3), Peter Nicol (4), James Willstrop (8), Nick Matthew (9) and Simon Parke (22), while second seeds France will be led by world No1 and world champion Thierry Lincou, backed by Gregory Gaultier (10), Renan Lavigne (24), Jean-Michel Arcucci (56), Laurent Elriani (74) and Julien Balbo (78).

The Pool line-ups 2005 European Championships are (with seeding in brackets):

Men's Pool A: [1] England, [4] Netherlands, [5] Ireland, [8] Finland
Pool B: [2] France, [3] Wales, [6] Spain, [7] Germany
Pool C: [9] Denmark, [16] Czech Republic, [17] Italy
Pool D: [10] Switzerland, [15] Israel, [18] Greece
Pool E: [11] Sweden, [14] Austria, [19] Hungary
Pool F: [12] Scotland, [13] Belgium, [20] Russia, [21] Ukraine

Women's Pool A: [1] England, [4] Belgium, [5] Germany, [8] Scotland
Pool B: [2], Netherlands, [3] France, [6] Denmark, [7] Ireland
Pool C: [9] Spain, [12] Italy, [13] Finland
Pool D: [10] Switzerland, [11] Austria, [14] Czech Republic