31/08/2019 20:00
Dutchmen upset local heroes in Montpellier final
2019 FIVB World Tour 1-Star - Montpellier
Montpellier, France, August 31, 2019. Dirk Boehlé/Stefan Boermans of the Netherlands are the eventual winners of the FIVB World Tour 1-Star event held in Montpellier, as they beat local stars Quincy Ayé/Arnaud Gauthier-Rat in the gold medal match (25-23, 21-15) in a repeat of the clash these teams had contested earlier in the tournament.
Ayé and Gauthier-Rat had lost to Boehlé/Boermans in the pool phase in three sets and ahead of the grand finale, Ayé was confident they would make amends for that loss. “Playing against them again, we will have the opportunity to show that we have worked hard to improve and that we always go for the gold medal,” he said.
However, Boehlé and Boermans looked in fine form, especially after a classy performance in the semi-final with Austria where they scored as many as eight straight points in the second set. Despite the support from the stands for the local team, Boehlé and Boermans could celebrate their first World Tour triumph as a team.
“I would like to congratulate our opponents but the organising team as well,” Boehlé said. “We are happy that we could stay unbeaten throughout the competition and that the result in the final with the French team was pretty much the same as a few days ago in the pool phase.”
The loss was a big disappointment for Gauthier-Rat. “They were stronger than us, but we will quickly resume working because the World Tour event in Rome starts in a few days only,” he said.
Despite qualifying two teams for the semis, Austria had to be content with the bronze medal. After taking the first set, Florian Schnetzer/Laurenz Leitner failed to capitalise on a few match balls and lost the second 25-27. However, they regrouped to edge compatriots Arwin Kopschar and Michael Murauer 15-8 in the tiebreak in a match that lasted 50 minutes. Kopschar and Murauer had reached the semis after starting their journey in the qualification round on Tuesday.
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