The draw for the Qualification Round III has been made in the famous London Aquatic Centre in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, upon the occasion of LEN’s official site-visit before the 2016 swimming Europeans. Two group-winners, based on the Adriatic coast-line, face perhaps the toughest tests: last year’s silver medallist Primorje Rijeka (CRO) and Jadran Herceg Novi (MNE) both have to fight hard to reach the group stage.
The four group-winners were paired with the respective runners-up in London, where the draw was conducted by LEN Sports&Office Manager Marco Birri, and attended by Tom Chambers (CEO OC 2016), Kieran Walsh (project manager OC), Natalie Cunningham (competition manager OC) and David Rouger (Len TV & Marketing Director).
Primorje Rijeka (CRO), runner-up in the Final Six last May, will clash Waspo Hannover (GER). The Germans line up a handful of fine foreign players and as a demonstration they challenged the Hungarian participants in the previous stages: held OSC on a draw in round one and almost did the same against Szolnok.
Oradea (ROU), reached the prelims two years ago, now faces OSC Budapest.The Hungarians, surprise runners-up in their domestic league last season, came first in 2014 in the second round but that time Szolnok ousted them in the play-offs.
Szolnok will meet Marseille: the new Hungarian champion, fielding half of the national team and three Serbian world champions, is an outstanding favourite to make the prelims again.
Jadran (MNE) can be the first Montenegrin club in four years which make the prelims but they have a mountain to climb: playing with Brescia was perhaps the last thing they had dreamed of. Last weekend Jadran went through with three single-goal wins while the Italians, despite finishing second, remained undefeated in the previous round as well.
Champions League, Qualification Round III, Draw
Match A – Primorje Erste Bank Rijeka (CRO) vs Waspo Hannover (GER)
Match B – DiGi Oradea (ROU) vs A Hid-OSC Budapest (HUN)
Match C – CN Marseille (FRA) vs Szolnoki Dozsa-Kozgep (HUN)
Match D – Jadran Carine Herceg Novi (MNE) vs AN Brescia (ITA)
Playing dates: 3 and 17 October
Winners qualify to the preliminaries, losers will continue in the quarter-finals of the Euro Cup
