Egypt won nine of the 10 trophies at the centennial Alpha Bravo Construction British Junior Open in Birmingham but Lauren Baltayan added a Gallic flavour to the celebrations.
French second seed Baltayan finally won a BJO trophy at her seventh and final attempt, showing plucky retrieval skills and relentless determination to defeat India’s top seed Anahat Singh 11-9, 7-11, 11-3, 11-9 in the GU19 final.
In doing so, Baltayan became the second ever female French title winner at the BJO after Camille Serme’s victories in 2006 and 2008.
“I’m very proud of how I played,” she said. “It just shows how far I’ve come. I started playing here when I was nine years old, and now to win in this highest category shows that all the dedication and training paid off.”
The BU19 final was an epic duel between close friends [2] Seif Refaay and top seed Adam Hawal. Just as in last year’s BU17 final, it was Refaay who came out on top, 11-9, 2-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9.
“I’m feeling over the moon to win the British Junior Open like so many Egyptian legends who came before,” said 17-year-old second seed Refaay. “Fighting in every match with 100% effort and winning is a really great feeling.”
The tall, imposing figure of Farouk Mohamed proved too strong for Egyptian compatriot [3/4] Philopater Saleh in the BU17, winning 11-9, 11-7, 11-5.
GU17 top seed Habiba Rizk looks to have a bright future ahead of her. The 15-year-old collected her third BJO crown thanks to an 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 triumph against [3/4] Mariam El Mattet. There was a bronze medal for England as local girl [5/8] Mariam Eissa defeated USA’s [2] Isabella Tang in four.
Hassan Abdelgalil won the battle of the top seeds in the BU15 final with a 11-7, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8 triumph over [2] Aly Abdel-Fattah.
Layan Moustafa collected her second BJO trophy by virtue of an 11-9, 11-9, 11-4 triumph over [3/4] Reem Elmaghraby in the GU15 showpiece.
Yahia Waleed Rayan fulfilled his top billing in the BU13 and went one better than last year’s runner-up finish as he overcame compatriot [2] Adam Ragab 11-3, 11-7, 11-5 to sweep through the week without dropping a game.
Top seed Serein Mohamed was forced to dig deep against [2] Nabila Elnahas in a gutsy 12-10, 12-10, 6-11, 11-3 victory in the GU13.
[5/8] Ngo San Leung’s bid to win Hong Kong’s second ever BJO gold medal foundered at the hands of Egyptian second seed Hazem Mahmoud El Fadly who was a little more streetwise in his 11-7, 14-12, 11-8 victory in the BU11.
Second seed Alia Elnazer was an 8-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-8 victor over Egyptian compatriot [5/8] Malika Ghonim in the GU11.
Alpha Bravo Construction British Junior Open 2026 – final results
G11 [2] Alia Elnazer (Egy) 3-1 [5/8] Malika Ghonim (Egy) 8-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-8 (31m)
B11 [2] Hazen Mahmoud El Fadly (Egy) 3-0 [5/8] Ngo San Leung (Hkg) 11-7, 14-12, 11-8 (31m)
G13 [1] Serein Mohamed (Egy) 3-1 [2] Nabila Elnahas (Egy) 12-10, 12-10, 6-11, 11-3 (39m)
B13 [1] Yahia Waleed Rayan (Egy) 3-0 [2] Adam Ragab (Egy) 11-3, 11-7, 11-5 (27m)
G15 [1] Layan Moustafa (Egy) 3-0 [3/4] Reem Elmaghraby (Egy) 11-9, 11-9, 11-4 (33m)
B15 [1] Hassan Abdelgalil (Egy) 3-1 [2] Aly Abdel-Fattah (Egy) 11-7, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8 (31m)
G17 [1] Habiba Rizk (Egy) 3-0 [3/4] Mariam El Mattet (Egy) 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 (23m)
B17 [1] Farouk Mohamed (Egy) 3-0 [3/4] Philopater Saleh (Egy) 11-9, 11-7, 11-5 (33m)
G19 [2] Lauren Baltayan (Fra) 3-1 [1] Anahat Singh (Ind) 11-9, 7-11, 11-3, 11-9 (46m)
B19 [2] Seifeldin Refaay (Egy) 3-2 [1] Adam Hawal (Egy) 11-9, 2-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9 (77m)
