Sports Flash
The latest news from football, swimming and basketball.
Florin Orban, 09.07.2026, 13:45
Universitatea Craiova got off to a good start in the Champions League qualifiers. In the first qualifying round, the Romanian champions defeated the Belarusian champions, ML Vitebsk, 4-1 away from home. The match was played behind closed doors in the Hungarian city of Mezőkövesd. Universitatea scored first through Ștefan Baiaram in the 4th minute. Vitebsk equalised in the 20th minute via Valeri Gromyko. The Craiova side then pulled ahead with two penalty goals scored by the Palestinian player Assad Al Hamlawi in the 24th and 44th minutes. The final score was sealed in the last minutes of play by the French player Steven Nsimba. The Romanian side was better in every respect, and it is highly unlikely they will miss out on qualifying for the next round of the competition. The return match is scheduled for next Wednesday on the Ion Oblemenco Stadium in Craiova. If they get past Vitebsk, Universitatea Craiova will play in the Champions League second qualifying round against the winner between Borac Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Levski Sofia (Bulgaria). In the first leg on Tuesday, the two sides drew 1–1 in Banja Luka. As for the Belarusian team, if they are eliminated by Craiova, they will move to the second qualifying round of the third-tier European competition, the Conference League.
Romanian swimmer Daria Silișteanu won the gold medal in the 50-meter backstroke race on Wednesday at the European Junior Swimming Championships in Munich. She clocked 27.94 seconds, a new national record for the senior category, according to Agerpres, citing the Facebook page of the Romanian Swimming and Modern Pentathlon Federation.
In the quarterfinals of the Basketball Champions League qualifying tournament, CSM CSU Oradea will face the Cypriot team AEK Larnaca, following the drawing of lots held on Wednesday in Mies, Switzerland. If they defeat the Cypriot side, the Romanian side will play in the semifinals against the winner of the match between Switzerland’s Fribourg Olympic and Georgia’s Batumi. The qualifying tournament is scheduled to take place from September 14 to 20. If they fail to qualify for the Basketball Champions League, Oradea are guaranteed a place in the FIBA Europe Cup group, with the drawing of lots scheduled for July 16 in Munich.
