Greek junior swimmer Vangelis Dumas won gold at the European Championships

Sixteen-year-old Greek swimmer Vangelis Dumas emerged victorious in the 100m breaststroke, clinching the gold medal on the final day of the European Junior Swimming Championships in Vilnius, Lithuania. Representing Olympiacos, the Alexandroupolis native clocked a time of 1:00.80 to secure his place atop the podium.

The victory marks Greece’s first gold medal at a European Junior Championships in five years since Apostolos Papastamos’ double victory in the 200m and 400m medley in Kazan. It is also the only medal for Team Greece in this year’s competition.

Vangelis Dumas is also set to compete at the Paris Olympics as part of Greece’s 4x100m medley relay team.

Despite his efforts, Artemis Vasilaki missed the podium in the 400m freestyle, finishing fifth with a time of 4:12.59.

He fell short of the Greek national record (4:11.47) he set at the “Acropolis” meet, which would have secured him a bronze medal.

Hungary’s Mina Abraham won the event in 4:09.85, followed by Italy’s Lucrezia Domina in 4:11.01 and Belgium’s Sarah Dimond in 4:11.48.

Fellow swimmer Despina Pyrili competed in the 100m backstroke final, finishing seventh in 1:01.88, just outside the Greek national girls record (1:01.80) she set in May at the National Championships.

16-year-old Pyrili, representing Panserraikos, has two more years in the juniors and is aiming for further achievements.

She hopes that from next season, she won’t have to travel daily from Serres to Kavala for training, as the local pool has been closed for several months.