No respite for Europe's top beach stars

Although the A1 CEV EuroBeachVolley Vienna 2023 are just a few short weeks back, many of Europe’s biggest beach stars have kept themselves busy in the meantime, from the U20 EuroBeachVolley in Riga to the Elite16 in Hamburg for a final chance to qualify for the world championships.

U20 EuroBeachVolley

The French youngsters Canet/Rotar, after making ninth place at the A1 CEV EuroBeachVolley Vienna 2023, managed to secure the gold medal at the U20 EuroBeachVolley in Riga, Latvia. The next big goal for the French duo is a spot in Paris 2024. The silver medal went to the young Austrians Hammaberg/Berger, who had defeated the French at last year’s U20 final. The third place went to home duo Bulgacs/Fokerots.

In the women’s competition, the gold medal went to Poland’s Malgorzata Ciezkowska and Urszula Lunio, who went undefeated in the Latvian capital, winning all their seven matches in the with just two sets dropped. They put Swiss Muriel Bossart and Leona Kernen in second place, whereas reigning U18 European champions, Czech twins Anna and Kateřina Pavelková, took bronze after defeating Austrians Lia Berger and Lilli Hohenauer. Notably, the Czech had already beat the Austrian duo at the U18 European Championships in Greece last September, where the latter duo took the silver medal at just 15 years old.

Hamburg

Fresh off the podium in Vienna, European champions Åhman/Hellvig continued their winning streak in Hamburg. In the Am Rothenbaum Stadium they put Nicolai/Cottafava in second place in an exciting three-set (21-16, 22-24, 21-19) win after only just beating the Italian duo in the EuroBeachVolley semifinals. The two teams are followed by Norwegians Mol/Sørum, who won the bronze medal in their match against Brazilians Andre Stein and George Wanderley, making sure that the men’s podium in Hamburg was dominated by Europeans.

In the women’s competition, however, Brazilian power duo Ana Patrícia/Duda won all seven of their matches, losing only one set in the pool play to Carol Salgado and Bárbara Seixas, and rose to first place, putting Americans Nuss/Kloth in second. The German home team Müller/Tillmann managed to make third place by putting Carol and Bárbara in fourth.

For many teams, collecting points to qualify for the World Championship was the main goal as this was the last tournament before the deadline.

Road to the world championships

Many European beach duos have made it to the main draw of the Beach Volleyball World Championships in Tlaxcala, Mexico this October, among them reigning world champions Mol/Sørum, European champions Åhman/Hellvig, and Austrian beach stars Hörl/Horst. Nicolai/Cottafava, who made fourth place in the European championships, are another promising team on the rise. The American duos taking part are not to be underestimated either, especially Partain/Benesh, who have emerged as a dark horse in various competitions, claiming bronze in Ostrava, gold in Gstaad, and silver in Montreal.

The Americans, as well as the Brazilians, also have a strong presence in the women’s competition, with 4 duos each taking part. We remain curious whether the Europeans will be able to keep up with them, especially with reigning world champions Ana Patrícia/Duda in the mix. Competing with them will be the new European champions Hüberli/Brunner along with Spanish runner-ups Álvarez/Moreno, German power duo Ludwig/Lippmann, and Swiss beach stars Vergé-Dépré/Mäder, who made second, third, and fourth place respectively at the European championships.