SINGAPORE, 8 December 2023 – Dominating victories from world No. 3 Switzerland and world No. 4 Czech Republic saw them reach the semi-finals of the Women’s World Floorball Championships (WFC) 2023 on Friday (8 December). Both sent warning shots to their upcoming rivals with convincing scorelines as Switzerland beat Slovakia 8-4, while the Czech Republic demolished Denmark 13-1.
The Swiss will next face defending champions Sweden after world No. 2 Finland take on the Czech Republic at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Saturday in a repeat of the WFC 2021 semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Japan came from a goal down to beat Germany 4-1 and finish ninth.
Besides the semi-finalists, hosts Singapore will also be in action on Saturday when they will aim to achieve their best WFC finish by beating Norway for 11th place.
The results from Dec 8 are as follows.
Switzerland v Slovakia
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#26 Nathalie Spichige (01:49) #12 Seraina Fitzi (14:15) #17 Isabelle Gerig (23:57) #2 Leonie Wieland (24:51) #17 Isabelle Gerig (26:10) #10 Celine Stettler (28:22) #96 Chiara Gredig (31:02) #26 Nathalie Spichige (51:08) |
#30 Paulina Hudakova (11:36) #61 Kristina Belicova (33:39) #30 Paulina Hudakova (45:04) #12 Katarina Klapitova (56:15) |
Switzerland booked their place in the semi-finals of the WFC 2023 with a resounding 8-4 victory over Slovakia, who had no answers to their opponents’ attacking play. Nathalie Spichiger opened the scoring for Switzerland just 1 minute and 49 seconds into the game. Though Paulina Hudakova equalised, Slovakia’s joy was short-lived as Switzerland responded swiftly through Seraina Fitzi to regain the lead. Switzerland continued to rack up the score, reeling off five goals in the second period – including four that were scored within five minutes – while limiting their opponents to just one. Slovakia returned steadier in the third period with goals from Hudakova and captain Katarina Klapitova, but Switzerland were too far ahead and with Spichiger scoring her second goal of the match, the world No. 3 side secured their spot in the last four. They face defending champions Sweden in the semi-finals on Saturday.
Czech Republic v Denmark
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#5 Eliska Krupnova (01:50) #23 Karolina Sucha (09:15) #7 Anna Bruchackova (10:29) #5 Eliska Krupnova (12:21) #2 Eliska Chuda (17:19) #21 Martina Repkova (19:34) #21 Martina Repkova (27:25) #4 Michaela Kubeckova (32:47) #27 Vendula Maroszova (36:19) #7 Anna Bruchackova (38:32) (Penalty Shot) #21 Martina Repkova (39:37) #7 Anna Bruchackova (46:07) #5 Eliska Krupnova (56:11) |
#9 Lina Voldby (49:08) |
Japan v Germany
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#19 Yu Abe (22:41) #3 Yui Goto (52:48) #13 Fuku Shibata (58:38) #8 Mahiro Shimizu (59:12) |
#9 Vanessa Weikum (9:09) |
Japan concluded their WFC 2023 campaign in 9th place after a 4-1 victory over Germany in a contest that was slow to start but delivered thrills and spills in the final 10 minutes. Germany drew first blood through Vanessa Weikum in the first period and Yu Abe equalised early in the second, but both sides were unable to break the deadlock throughout the rest of the second period. Japan also suffered a scare when captain Yui Goto took a tumble during the second period and spent several minutes on the ground. She returned to the court for the third period, which continued with neither side succeeding in their attempts to score. But Germany’s Hannah Gotze was handed a penalty in the 52nd minute for obstruction, and their Japanese opponents seized the opportunity to consolidate their attack. Goto produced a beautiful solo effort to give Japan a 2-1 advantage, to the delight of the flag-waving Japan fans in the crowd. With the timer counting down and Germany looking to mount a comeback, the latter opted to play the final three minutes without a goalkeeper. It was a strategy that backfired, however, as Japan plundered two more goals into an empty net through Fuka Shibata and Mahiro Shimizu. Japan’s 9th-placed finish is an improvement from their last WFC outing in 2019, when they finished in 13th position. Meanwhile, Germany placed 10th to match their result from the previous WFC in 2021.
Tickets are available at https://www.sistic.com.sg/events/wfc2023. More match updates are available at https://app.floorball.sport/leagueorganizer/Magazine/92#/leagueorganizersite/92/start.
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