Blast From the Past as Normunds Rumba Wins OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo €555 NLH Championship

Wednesday brought tons of excitement to Olympic Voodoo Casino as the first major champion of the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition was crowned after Latvia’s Normunds Rumba shipped the €555 NLH Championship for €19,435.

Rumba, was a familiar face in the Latvian poker world for many years before disappearing off poker map with his The Hendon Mob profile now showing an 11-year gap between cashes. Rumba admitted it’s been over five years since he last attended a major poker series, and while he doesn’t plan to play nonstop, he shared it won’t be another five years before we see him battling on the felt once again.

Rumba wasn’t the only champion on Wednesday as Latvia’s Dāvis Modāns shipped the €250 PLO4/PLO5 Progressive Bounty for €1,935 plus bounties after defeating the charismatic Edgars Beizaks in heads-up play. Later in the evening, Ukraine’s Serhii Leonov won the €200 NLH title for €2,590.

Meanwhile, Day 1a of the €1,100 Main Event attracted 40 entries, adding a cool €38,000 to the prize pool. Lithuania’s Justas Vaičiulionis bagged up the overnight chip lead of 248,000 to lead the 12 remaining survivors. Day 1b and Day 1c on Thursday will continue to add to the field, with players still able to get into the action during the first two blind levels of Friday’s Day 2.

The poker.pro live reporting, headlined by Richard Hayes, will begin at Noon when cards are in the air for the final day of Day 1b of the €1,100 Main Event.

• Read more: Follow the biggest hands, bad beats, and more in the OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo live blog at poker.pro
• Read more: Rare Six-Way Chop on Monday at OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition
• Read more: Wasylenko, Daugaviņš, and Super Bike Star Rožkalns Win OlyBet Showdown Riga Titles on Sunday
• Read more: OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Welcomes Amazing Opening Day Crowd
• Read more: €1,100 Main Event Headlines the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Voodoo Riga Spring Edition (March 14-22) 

Normunds Rumba Shakes Off Cobwebs to Win OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition €555 NLH Championship (€19,435)

After a 12-hour final day, Normunds Rumba of Latvia has emerged as a worthy winner of the €555 NLH Championship at the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition here at Olympic Voodoo Casino, Riga.

Rumba defeated fellow countryman Vladislavs Petrov heads-up to bank €19,435 and take the trophy, a feat made all the more remarkable as Rumba revealed this week is the first time he has played a live poker tournament in at least five years.

Rumba overcame a 181-entry field to scoop the lion’s share of the €85,975 prize pool, while Petrovs had to console himself with the runner-up prize of €12,540.

Rumba’s score represents a new career best in terms of recorded live results and marks his first recorded live cash since 2015.

Winner’s Reaction

Gambling industry professional Rumba was delighted with the win, mainly as it proved to himself that he can still cut it at the poker table, after significantly reducing his volume in recent years.

“Thank you, it was actually quite a smooth ride these last couple of days. I mostly had a top-ten stack throughout and wasn’t in too many all-in situations.

The final table was strong, so I’m very satisfied and happy. I had a long break from poker, I used to play a lot online and live, but my other businesses have taken over and I just haven’t had the time. I think this series is my first live tournament in at least five years. I like the venue, it’s my home casino. I wanted to find my old self, and I thought this could help.

I don’t think it will result in me getting back on the scene too much. It’s really nice to bring this trophy home, and prove to myself I still have it, the instincts are still there! It definitely won’t be five years before you see me again though! I didn’t realize this was my biggest live score. I’ve had some good scores online, but that’s great to have a new mark to try to beat!

I wasn’t playing for the money really. I felt so confident and just wanted to win it. I wanted this trophy, and I kept that no fear mindset in the moment. Money is nice, but it wasn’t my main motivation, maybe it should have been!”

Final Day Recap

A total of 43 players had progressed from the two starting flights, with Rumba sitting in the top ten, but with late registration open for the first two levels of the final day, a further 27 entries were gathered before closing time.

Rumba was still sitting pretty in third at the first break, but had a setback when he was caught bluffing by Raivo Grislis. Rumba bounced back, however, and was in the chip lead by the time of the second break.

The bubble was reached in the third session, and the double elimination of Kristaps Zarans and Garijs Rozkalns meant neither player went home empty-handed. Rumba kept steadily building during this period, and by the dinner break was still sitting second, just behind Marijus Dirgela.

Not long after dinner, Nauris Jansons was eliminated to set the final table, which began with Hryhorii Meleshenko leading the way, followed by Dirgela and Petrovs, while Rumba was still well positioned.

The final table got off to a slow start, and it was at least 90-minutes before Mateusz Oscilowski was first to fall, bowing out to Gediminas Guzelis. Juris Bonders followed suit shortly thereafter after running into Eriks Krumins’ bigger pair.

Rumba took the chip lead when he severely damaged Dirgela, turning trips and getting a full double-up on the river. After the exit of Yehvan Pavlenko to Guzelis, Rumba then took a big pot against the same opponent, forcing Guzelis to fold pocket queens on a king-high board.

After Dirgela and Krumins were disposed of by Guzelis and Petrovs in fifth and sixth, respectively, Meleshenko busted to Guzelis in fourth. A lengthy period of three-handed combat then ensued between Rumba, Petrovs, and Guzelis, with neither player willing to give an inch or lose patience in pursuit of the trophy, despite the session stretching into its eleventh hour.

The logjam was broken when Guzelis jammed from the small blind into Rumba’s aces, setting the stage for the heads-up contest between Rumba and Petrovs, with Rumba starting with a reasonable lead.

After brief deal discussions failed to bear fruit, the players engaged in a back-and-forth fight for the title. Petrovs took the lead briefly, but the final curtain came shortly after. Petrovs limp-jammed pocket sixes, and was looked up by Rumba with a strong ace.

Rumba flopped top pair and improved to two pair on the turn. Petrovs could not find a miracle two-outer on the river, and the contest was suddenly over, with Rumba crowned the champion.

That concludes poker.pro’s coverage of this event, but be sure to stay tuned throughout the week for our coverage of the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition €1,100 Main Event, starting at noon tomorrow.

€555 NLH Championship Full Results

Place	Player	Prize
1	Normunds Rumba	€19,435
2	Vladislavs Petrovs	€12,540
3	Gediminas Guzelis	€8,960
4	Hryhorii Meleshenko	€6,970
5	Eriks Krumins	€5,370
6	Marijus Dirgela	€4,180
7	Yehven Pavlenko	€3,320
8	Juris Bonders	€2,790
9	Mateusz Oscilowski	€2,390
10	Nauris Jansons	€2,000
11	Matiss Celmins	€2,000
12	Kristaps Deksnis	€1,730
13	Daniels Viksna	€1,730
14	Tero Hokkanen	€1,520
15	Algirdas Saveikis	€1,520
16	Sergejs Piratovs	€1,340
17	Edgars Hauks	€1,340
18	Axel Saarniala	€1,190
19	Viesturs Osis	€1,190
20	Eric Wasylenko	€1,190
21	Jorgen Andersen	€1,090
22	Janis Velkeris	€1,090
23	Garijs Rozkalns	€545
24	Kristaps Zarans	€545

• €555 NLH Championship reports and live coverage by Richard Hayes.

Dāvis Modāns Wins €250 PLO4/PLO5 Progressive Bounty

The €250 PLO4/PLO5 Progressive Bounty attracted 78 entries to add €16,302 in prizes, including €7,800 in bounties. The action was hot and heavy straight out of the gate as players began hunting bounties.

The final two players call Riga their homes, with Dāvis Modāns and Edgars Beizaks each locking up the €1,935 top prize, along with any bounties they earned up to that stage. Modāns won all the bragging rights, the trophy, and the big bounty at the end.

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Dāvis Modāns	Latvia	€1,935
2	Edgars Beizaks	Latvia	€1,935
3	Jure Barun	Sweden	€1,292
4	Mantas Bagočius	Lithuania	€910
5	Jami Juutila	Finland	€700
6	Priit Vanem	Estonia	€570
7	Andreas Backlund	Finland	€480
8	Askolds Uldriķis	Latvia	€380
9	Ville Keranen	Finland	€300

Serhii Leonov Wins €200 NLH

The €200 NLH attracted 47 entries, creating a prize pool of € 7,591. Ukraine’s Serhii Leonov earned the title and the €2,590 top prize after he defeated Finland’s Kai Kangas (second – €1,671) during the heads-up action.

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Serhii Leonov	Ukraine	€2,590
2	Kai Kangas	Finland	€1,671
3	Iļja Sluckers	Latvia	€1,210
4	Sergejs Piratovs	Latvia	€910
5	Niko Luhtalampi	Finland	€680
6	Viesturs Ošis	Latvia	€530

€1,100 Main Event Day 1a Chip Counts

Rank	Player	Country	Chips	Big Blinds
1	Justas Vaičiulionis	Lithuania	248,000	165
2	Artūras Kesleris	Lithuania	213,000	142
3	Uldis Lejnieks	Latvia	142,500	95
4	Jani Makinen	Finland	123,000	82
5	Roman Petelytski	Ukraine	87,000	58
6	Tomas Bulkšas	Lithuania	83,500	56
7	Petteri Laiho	Finland	79,000	53
8	Roberts Krīgers	Latvia	66,000	44
9	Kristoffer Winterstein	Sweden	60,000	40
10	Ryhor Karapanau	Belarus	44,500	30
11	Ņikita Žarovs	Latvia	31,000	21
12	Andrei Zahortas	Belarus	22,500	15

OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Schedule (March 19)

Thursday is mostly about the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Riga Voodoo Spring Edition €1,100 Main Event, with the final two opening flights running at Noon and 8 p.m., respectively. Players will also have two chances to earn trophies on Thursday in the €250 NLH at 5 p.m., followed by the €250 NLH Progressive Bounty at 9:30 p.m.

Check out today’s schedule below and head to OlyBetEvents.com to learn more about the full schedule, a player’s guide, and more.

Time	Event
12:00	Event #16: €1,100 Main Event Day 1b
17:00	Event #19: €250 NLH
20:00	Event #16: €1,100 Main Event Day 1c
21:30	Event #20: €250 NLH Progressive Bounty

• Article originally produced at poker.pro.