MONTREUX, Switzerland — The CCB Europe Top 16 Cup delivered a weekend of extraordinary table tennis from February 5-8, with France's Alexis Lebrun proving that his reign atop European table tennis is far from over and Germany's Sabine Winter announcing her arrival among the continent's elite with a dominant maiden title.

Lebrun, who captured his first Europe Top 16 Cup crown last year, showed no signs of complacency as he navigated a path to glory that included one of the most emotionally charged matches of the tournament — a semifinal clash against his own brother, Felix Lebrun.

The all-French semifinal had the potential to be a tense, drawn-out family affair, but Alexis was ruthlessly efficient. He dispatched Felix 3-0, leaving no doubt about which Lebrun brother currently holds the upper hand on the continental stage. It was a statement performance that set the tone for what was to come in the final.

Slovenia's Darko Jorgic stood between Lebrun and a successful title defense, and the final promised to be a fiercely competitive encounter. Jorgic, one of Europe's most talented and unpredictable players, had the tools to trouble the Frenchman. But Lebrun was in imperious form from the outset.

The defending champion raced through the first two games with identical 11-6 scorelines, his precision and composure visibly unsettling Jorgic. The Slovenian showed his fighting spirit in the third game, clawing back to take it 11-9 and offering the Montreux crowd a glimmer of hope for a dramatic comeback. But Lebrun slammed the door shut in the fourth game, reasserting his authority with another 11-6 victory to seal the match 3-1 and retain his title.

The result confirmed Lebrun's position as the man to beat in European table tennis. His ability to maintain the highest level across consecutive editions of the tournament speaks to a mental fortitude and consistency that few of his rivals can match.

If Lebrun's victory was a story of sustained excellence, Winter's triumph in the women's draw was one of pure domination. The German entered the final against Romania's Bernadette Szocs and produced a performance for the ages.

Winter did not merely win the final — she dismantled her opponent. The scoreline read 3-0, with each game finishing 11-4. Across three games, Szocs managed to win just 12 points in total. It was a display of such overwhelming superiority that it left spectators and commentators alike searching for superlatives.

For Winter, the victory represented a career milestone. Having long been a respected figure on the European circuit, claiming her first Europe Top 16 Cup title elevates her into a different category altogether. The manner of her victory — conceding an average of just four points per game in the final — suggests she arrived in Montreux at the absolute peak of her powers.

Szocs, a player of considerable talent and experience, simply had no answers. Winter's shot selection, placement, and intensity were at a level that made one of Europe's finest players look entirely outmatched.

As the curtain fell on another memorable edition of the Europe Top 16 Cup, the tournament left fans with two defining images: Lebrun lifting the trophy for the second consecutive year with the quiet confidence of a champion who expects nothing less, and Winter embracing a breakthrough moment that may well define her career.

European table tennis continues to produce compelling storylines, and the 2026 edition in Montreux delivered them in abundance.