Fleisher Captures Spingold Title in Dominant Run

Team Bridge • July 20, 2026

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July 20, 2026

Martin Fleisher, Thomas Bessis, Cédric Lorenzini, Chip Martel, Sjoert Brink and Sebastiaan Drijver won the 2026 Spingold Knockout Teams, defeating Andy Goodman, Giacomo Percario, Mike Passell, Shan Huang, Kevin Dwyer Rimstedt and Robert Levin 134-79 in the final.

Fleisher opened the match with a 70-19 quarter and remained ahead for the rest of the final. The team had been in front at every quarter break in every knockout match from the Round of 64 onwards. In the semifinal, Fleisher led Paul Street’s team 134-4 after 45 boards, at which point Street conceded.

The winning lineup included two French players, Bessis and Lorenzini, and the Dutch pair Brink and Drijver. Bessis became a WBF World Grand Master in 2017. Martel, inducted into the ACBL Hall of Fame in 2014, added another Spingold title to his record.

Goodman finished second with Percario, Passell, Huang, Dwyer Rimstedt and Levin. Street’s team and Harrison Luba’s team shared third place.