Utrecht, The Netherlands, July 21, 2018. The blocking abilities of this Dutch giant are known the world over. Christiaan Varenhorst is one of the best Beach Volleyball blockers, so we had a chat with him about how he goes about his game.
The blocking game in Beach Volleyball is a mental game. Everyone knows Christiaan Varenhorst as one of the best blockers in the world. So how does he manage to get those blocks?
"I like to play the blocking game within the Beach Volleyball game. Trying to anticipate what the opponent is going to do. Is he going to shoot, will he be hitting? What am I showing, what am I blocking?", Varenhorst explains.
In 2015 the World Championships were organised in the Netherlands as well, Varenhorst was playing with Reinder Nummerdor and together they reached the final in The Hague. After three hard fought sets, they had to succumb to Brazil's Alison Cerutti and Bruno Oscar Schmidt.
In 2017 Varenhorst was playing with indoor Volleyball player Maarten van Garderen and they had a great run at the World Championships. After having just played one season together they managed to make it to the semi-finals. They ended up fourth in the end, losing the bronze medal match to Russia's Viacheslav Krasilnikov and Nikita Liamin.
Van Garderen chose to go back to indoor Volleyball, so Varenhorst had to look for a new partner. He found one in the upcoming young player Jasper Bouter (21). In 2017 they became national champions of the Netherlands in one of the first tournaments they played as a team.
The decision-making for Bouter/Varenhorst is a real team effort. Varenhorst says about this: "A shot can be a blocking tactic, because my defender can dig the ball. But also my defender can help me get a block, so it's a cooperation between these two."
Bouter/Varenhorst have played in the Round of 16 against Bartosz Losiak and Piotr Kantor in Apeldoorn and won in three sets. In the quarterfinal they faced off with Anders Berntsen Mol and Christian Sandlie Sørum (NOR). The Dutchies lost in a tight three-set match.