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Diario Euskadi

Ibarluzea and Libois Kick Off Bilbao Iron Cup Jai Alai Tournament

The qualifying pair from the preliminary phase will inaugurate the men's jai alai competition of the Bilbao Iron Cup, which is part of the Jai Alai League circuit.

Generic image of a cesta punta ball on the court, with a blurred fronton in the background.
IA

Generic image of a cesta punta ball on the court, with a blurred fronton in the background.

The duo of Ibarluzea and Libois, who qualified from the preliminary phase, are set to inaugurate the men's jai alai Bilbao Iron Cup, a scoring event for the Jai Alai League circuit, at the Bilbao Sports Club fronton.

The forward from Bidarte and the defender from Markina-Xemein will face Johan Sorozabal and Gorka Mugartegi 'Atain' in their opening match. This pair secured victory in the preliminary final last Saturday, defeating Eñaut Astelarra and Jon Zabala with scores of 13-15 and 6-15. In the semifinals, they caused an upset by clearly overcoming Ludovic Laduche and Julen del Río.
The tournament format will replicate previous years, with matches held on Friday afternoons starting from May 1st at 7:00 PM. The top two pairs from each group will advance to the semifinals. The elimination rounds leading up to the final are scheduled for May 22nd and 29th.
In the men's competition, Erkiaga-Manci and Urreisti-Basque will be the main attractions of the second match. Notably, Urreisti will also compete in the Individual final this Saturday. The groups are structured as follows: Group A includes Aritz Erkiaga-Manci, Urreisti-Basque, and Goitia-Gorka; while Group B consists of Johan-Atain, Olharan-Lekerika, and Libois-Ibarluzea.
Regarding the women's competition, the pairs Ihart-Arai and Elaia-Eneritz successfully advanced from the quarter-final stage. They defeated Erika-Maia (11-15 and 11-15) and Helena-Frida (15-5 and 15-7), respectively. Gogenola, the starting forward for the Euskal Selekzioa, already holds two txapelas, achieved with partners Ihart (2024) and Frida (2025). Her opponents in those victories were Erika-Frida and Ihart-Maialen.

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