27/08/2020 20:24
Teams from France, Chile and the Netherlands move on to Montpellier quarterfinals
2020 World Tour 1-Star - Montpellier
Montpellier, France, August 27, 2020. Two teams from France plus one from Chile and the Netherlands progressed straight to the quarterfinals of the World Tour 1-Star tournament in Montpellier after completion of pool play on Thursday. Another eight teams will contest the Round of 16 to stay alive in the competition.
The first team to move on straight to the quarterfinals were Dutch sensation Leon Luini and Matthew Immers. After leading their German opponents Armin Dollinger/Simon Kulzer 10-3 in the first set, they had to stand the comeback of their opponents and even cancelled a match ball before emerging victorious 2-1 (19-21, 21-19, 16-14) with a block.
Chilean cousins Marco and Esteban Grimalt continue to perform solidly in Montpellier
Germany’s second pair lost to the Chilean cousins Esteban and Marco Grimalt, among the favourites of the competition, who beat Max Betzien/Dirk Westphal 21-14, 21-12. The two teams from Germany will re-start their quest for glory from the Round of 16.
Two teams from France have progressed straight to the quarterfinals. Timothée Platre and Arnaud Loiseau (pictured above) were the first home side to achieve this feat after edging Italy’s Alex Ranghieri and Daniele Sablone. The first set was close but the second was some sort of a show by the home side (21-19, 21-13). Last year’s silver medal winners in Montpellier, Quincy Ayé and Arnaud Gauthier-Rat easily beat the Swedish team Peter Lundgren/Jakob Wijk Tegenrot 21-12, 21-14, thus securing their spot in the quarterfinals.
Swiss qualifiers Nathan Broch/Jonathan Jordan leave the tournament after losing to Sean Faiga and Netanel Amiram Ohana of Israel. Edouard Rowlandson and interim partner Tom Altwies lost to 2018 Youth Olympic champions Jonatan Hellvig and David Åhman of Sweden (16-21, 17-21). Edouard Rowlandson, recently crowned French champion, will therefore not have the chance to vie for another title. His regular partner Youssef Krou could not compete in Montpellier due to injury.
French youngsters Canet and Rotar showed glimpses of their potential ahead of #EuroBeachVolleyU18
The youngest players of the tournament, Téo Rotar and Arthur Canet leave the competition as well after losing to Martin Appelgren and Alexander Herrmann of Sweden. “We are not here to win this World Tour event, but to gain experience, especially for the CEV U18 Beach Volleyball European Championships coming up in September in Izmir, Turkey, where all teams will be within our reach,” the youngsters said. They showed glimpses of their potential, especially when scoring five points in a row in the second set before losing 17-21, 20-22 to the much more experienced Swedes.
To finish it off, Jérémy Silvestre/Titouan Halle are the third French team ousted from the tournament after losing 0-2 to Joao Pedrosa and Hugo Campos of Portugal.
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