The 2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker delivered plenty of action on a snowy Tuesday at Olympic Casino Lietuva, as two new champions were crowned and the €555 NLH Championship doubled in size ahead of live reporting coverage kicking off Wednesday on poker.pro.
Finland’s Väino Ketvell claimed the first trophy of the day by taking down the €200 PLO4/PLO5 for €1,610 after outdueling Lithuania’s Erikas Fominas heads-up. Lithuania’s Andrej Michailov, already with two PLO titles this festival, fell short of a rare triple, bowing out in ninth place.
Another bid for a trifecta came up short later in the night. Finland’s Rasmus Sihvonen, another two-time 2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker champion in addition to Michailov, made a deep run once again in the €250 NLH. As the snow fell quietly outside in Vilnius Old Town, the action heated up inside as Sihvonen reached heads-up play against Lithuania’s Audrius Navickas. This time, it was Navickas who prevailed, earning the title, trophy, and a €3,412 top prize, while Sihvonen settled for €2,205 and his second runner-up finish of the series.
Meanwhile, the €555 NLH Championship surged in size as 80 more entries joined Tuesday’s Day 1b flight, bringing the total field to 156 entries and creating a €74,100 prize pool, and counting. Late registration remains open through the first two 40-minute levels of Wednesday’s Day 2, which kicks off at noon. Italy’s Francesco De Martini leads the returning field after bagging 294,500 on Day 1a.
Stay tuned as poker.pro continues bringing you all the key moments and stories from the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker, including live reporting of the €555 NLH Championship and the €1,100 Main Event.
- LIVE REPORTING of the €555 NLH at poker.pro
- Read more: Andrej Michailov Wins Second OlyBet Vilnius Ace Breaker Trophy
- Read more: Rasmus Sihvonen Wins Second Vilnius Trophy in OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker €250 Opening Event
- Read more: Rasmus Sihvonen Looking to Add to Vilnius Legacy at the OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker
- Read more: Start Your 2026 Poker Calendar With OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker
- Read more: Rasmus Sihvonen Wins 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker Main Event
Väino Ketvall Triumphs in €200 PLO4/PLO5
Finland’s Väino Ketvell returned to the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius with unfinished business. Last autumn at the Kings of Vilnius, he put together an impressive run with three cashes and two deep final tables, including ninth place in the €555 NLH Championship for €2,970. This time, under the soft snowfall outside Olympic Casino Lietuva, Ketvell went one better, capturing the €200 PLO4/PLO5 title and the €1,610 top prize.
The event drew 20 entries, creating a €3,230 prize pool, and the top three spots paid. Sweden’s Michael Doverklint was the unfortunate bubble in fourth place, while Lithuania’s Žydrūnas Karčemarskas collected €650 for third before the heads-up duel was set between Ketvell and Lithuania’s Erikas Fominas. The Finn held his ground to secure the trophy, leaving Fominas with €970 for his runner-up finish.
For Ketvell, who also lifted a PLO side-event trophy at the 2023 WSOP Circuit Tallinn, this Vilnius win adds another milestone to his growing Baltic poker resume.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Väino Ketvell | Finland | €1,610 |
| 2 |  Erikas Fominas | Lithuania | €970 |
| 3 | Žydrūnas Karčemarskas | Lithuania | €650 |
Audrius Navickas Wins Gold in €250 NLH
The €250 NLH brought a lively Tuesday night crowd to Olympic Casino Lietuva, with 48 entries building a €10,032 prize pool. Two-time WSOP Circuit champion Kęstutis Jungevičius came heartbreakingly close to a cash, bowing out in seventh place just shy of the payouts.
The action went deep into the evening as Lithuania’s Igor Grimuta (third – €1,605), Latvia’s Stanislavs Russits (fourth – €1,205), Lithuania’s Vytautas Rubežius (fifth – €905), and Finland’s Juha Leino (sixth – €700) all hit the rail in the money.
The trifecta sweat was real for the defending OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker Main Event Rasmus Sihvonen champion, having already won two trophies and going for his third. Lithuania’s Audrius Navickas had plans of his own and earned a trophy and the €3,412 top prize, leaving Sihvonen without a trophy but with a healthy €2,205 runner-up prize.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Audrius Navickas | Lithuania | €3,412 |
| 2 | Rasmus Sihvonen | Finland | €2,205 |
| 3 | Igor Grimuta | Lithuania | €1,605 |
| 4 |  Stanislavs Russits | Latvia | €1,205 |
| 5 | Vytautas Rubežius | Lithuania | €905 |
| 6 | Juha Leino | Finland | €700 |
Live Reporting Begins Today at poker.pro
The live reporting of the 2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker begins today with Day 2 of the €555 NLH Championship at poker.pro. Christoffer Karlen will be bringing the action to your doorstep until Thursday’s conclusion of the €555 NLH Championship before hopping into coverage of Day 2 and beyond of the €1,100 Main Event.
Italy’s Francesco De Martini leads the way with 294,500, followed by Deividas Butnoras (288,500) and Vasilij Barna (244,000). Check out the top 10 chip counts below and head to the dedicated live reporting hub at poker.pro to review the seat draw and full chip counts.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Francesco De Martini | Italy | 294,500 | 147 |
| 2 | Deividas Butnoras | Lithuania | 288,500 | 144 |
| 3 | Vasilij Barna | Lithuania | 244,000 | 122 |
| 4 |  Evaldas Narmontas | Norway | 224,500 | 112 |
| 5 |  Mathies Boesen | Denmark | 214,000 | 107 |
| 6 | Juris Liepins | Latvia | 206,500 | 103 |
| 7 | Stanislovas Viničenka | Lithuania | 195,000 | 98 |
| 8 | Algirdas Šukys | Lithuania | 190,500 | 95 |
| 9 | Augustas Bareiša | Lithuania | 168,500 | 84 |
| 10 | Tomas Pinkevičius | Lithuania | 154,000 | 77 |
2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker Schedule (Wednesday, January 14)
The 2026 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker hits into its next gear on Wednesday. Not only will players be returning on Day 2 to compete for glory and more in the €555 NLH Championship at Noon, but the crown jewel of the festival, the €1,100 Main Event, kicks off with Day 1a at 4 p.m.
Players will have one shot to win a trophy in the €250 PLO4/PLO5 Progressive Bounty at 6 p.m., while those seeking to play the €1,100 Main Event at a fraction of the cost will have their chance at 9 p.m. in an €80 Mega Satellite awarding at least four Main Event seats.
Meanwhile, players will have a shot at punching their seat in the €1,100 Main Event for just €30, with three seats guaranteed in an 8 p.m. satellite.
Check out today’s schedule below or head to the OlyBet Events website for the full schedule.
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 12:00 | Event #9: €555 NLH Championship Day 2, Plays Down to Final Table |
| 16:00 | Event #16: €1,100 NLH Main Event Flight 1A, Plays 12 Levels Day 1 |
| 18:00 | Event #17: €250 PLO4/PLO5 Progressive Bounty, €100 Progressive Bounties, Button Round Each, 8-handed |
| 21:00 | Event #18: €80 Mega-Satellite to €1,100 Main Event, 4 x €1,100 Seats GTD! |
- Images courtesy of OlyBetEvents / Viktorija Makovskaja
- Article originally produced at poker.pro
