Aydin, Turkey, May 19, 2019.  Two firsts in Aydin, Turkey at the 2-Star World Tour event. For the Polish winners in the men's competition, Maciej Rudol and Jakub Szalankiewicz, it was their first gold from the FIVB World Tour. For Mariia Bocharova and Maria Voronina, their win over Ukraine in the final meant that they now have won their first 2-Star event. 

The men's final was a bit of a surprise, as top seeds Sven Winter and Alexander Walkenhorst (GER) lost their semifinal against the Italian side of Alex Ranghieri and Marco Caminati. In the other semifinal, second seeds from the Netherlands Jasper Bouter and Ruben Penninga had to acknowledge that Maciej Rudol and Jakub Szalankiewicz from Poland had the upper hand.

If the semi-finals finished in straight sets, the final was played in a fierce tiebreak. Rudol/Szalankiewicz had taken the first set by a large margin (21-14), in the second the Italians hit back with 21-19. In the third set, the teams were at it, giving little opportunity to the opposition to break away. The Polish team proved to be the more consistent when under strain, giving them the slightest of edges: 15-13. 

Maciej Rudol: “I cannot believe that we are the champions of a World Tour 2-Star event. We had really a great crowd here. I hope that we can get a good result in the next stop of the FIVB World Tour as well.”

Gold medal winners Jakub Szalankiewicz (left) and Maciej Rudol.

The bronze medal was won by Winter/Walkenhorst. Bouter and Penninga had too much trouble passing the Walkenhorst block. The Germans claimed a spot at the podium after winning 21-16, 21-17.

Alexander Walkenhorst: “I am happy that we finished in third place. When coming here, I did not know this city was like this. I love this city and their energy. We had a great weekend together. Thank you to the people of Aydın who supported us in all of the matches.”

Bocharova and Voronina prevail in tough tiebreaker 

The women's tournament also had an all-European final, with Mariia Bocharova and Maria Voronina from Russia and Maryna Samoday and Diana Lunina from Ukraine battling for the gold. In their semifinals the Russian teenagers set aside Canadians Taylor Pischke and Sophie Bukovec, a match that took them quite some effort: 2-0 (24-22, 21-17).

The Ukrainian squad fought hard against the eventual bronze medallists from Switzerland Laura Caluori and Dunja Gerson. With 21-18 and 21-19 they secured their place in the gold-medal match. 

Bronze medallist Laura Caluori spoke of a surprise podium: “I can say that we didn’t expect this result. We played a good match. I'm so happy that we got bronze medals.”

In an evenly matched final both teams won a set before having to stretch their energy in a tiebreak. Bocharova/Voronina were keenest at the end of the first set, taking it 21-17. Samoday and Lunina had the advantage in the second, taking it 21-16. In the third it was point-by-point. Ukraine reached the first match point, but it was Maria Voronina that took the helm at the right moment. At 14-14 she produced two ace serves, meaning that the 2018 Youth Olympic champions won their first FIVB World Tour 2-Star event.

Rising stars Mariia Bocharova and Maria Voronina were the winners of the gold medal in Aydin.

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