10/08/2013 21:30
Quest for gold approaches final stage as massive storm hits Vilnius
2013 CEV U20 Beach Volleyball European Championship
Vilnius, Lithuania, August 10, 2013. The fight for the U20 Beach Volleyball European crown hit its highest levels of excitement on Saturday as the continental Championship being held in the Lithuanian city of Vilnius reached its crucial stage. In this third day of competition, however, the emotions and drama of the elimination rounds were joined by an unexpected and seriously disturbing guest: a gigantic storm.
The CEV U20 Beach Volleyball European Championship in Vilnius progressed to one of its latest and most exciting stages, as the thrill of deciding the teams that will clash for gold was producing among the young participants the elation of dreams coming through as well as the heartbreak of wishes truncated. When one of the highlights of the day was taking place, as local heroines Ieva Dumbauskaite/Monika Povilaityte were playing Germany’s Sandra Ittlinger/Yanina Weiland for the last spot in the semifinals of the women’s tournament, a massive storm shook the Credit24 Arena.
All of a sudden, hurricane winds struck the courts, followed by an intense rain that turned the superb playing site in Vilnius into a raging river. As the spectators that crowded the stands flew the court and the players and officials were fighting to search a hiding place, the spectacular storm overturned the tents, flooded the sand of the playing area and swamped the whole arena, producing an image befitting a terror movie. Considering the terrible circumstances, there was no choice but to cancel the match. “It was an incredible storm and the playing conditions have been so seriously damaged, that it is impossible to go on. We are forced to cancel the game and postpone it for tomorrow”, said CEV Supervisor Henrique Gomes. The match Dumbauskaite/Povilaityte - Ittlinger/Weiland will be played on Sunday. The last spot in the semifinals will be decided on Sunday, starting at 08:45 hours (GMT +2).
As the storm was about to hit
Before the storm stroke, the competition followed a more habitual pattern, with the favorites earning their tickets to the semifinals and confirming the domination of the representatives from Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Austria and Russia. In the men’s tournament, Germany’s Max Betzien/Wito Krüger confirmed their role of surprise of the tournament by making it to the semifinals in their first international competition as a team. The young Germans beat Italians Giacomo De Fabritiis/Javier Facundo Martinez in a disputed match 2:1 (21-19, 15-21, 15-10) resolved in the tie-break thanks to the powerful blocks by the young Germans. “It was a hard way to the semifinals, but we were lucky and now we hope we get a medal!” said Wito Krüger, as his teammate, added: “We will face Poland, the hardest opponents, but we are looking forward to it, everything is possible”, commented Max Betzien.
On the other side of the net Betzien/Krüger will meet Poland’s Michal Bryl/Kacper Kujawiak, who stated their condition of one of the strongest teams in the tournament after achieving a convincing victory 2:0 (21-12, 21-19) over the local heroes, Arnas Rumsevicius/Lukas Kazdailis. The support of the Lithuanian fans that crowded the stands of Credit24 Arena and cheered all the way through wasn’t enough for the home team to fulfill their wishes of reaching the semifinals. “This is my dream. We finished in 5th place in the Under 21 tournament and that was an unexpected defeat for me; now we are in the semifinals and I couldn’t be any happier”, said Michal Bryl, who felt sorry for eliminating the local heroes. “If that’d happened to me at home and I was in their position, I wouldn’t be very pleased, so I understand their frustration”, he added.
Russians Viacheslav Kirienko/Dmitry Uraikin also earned the right to play on Sunday’s matches after beating Austria’s Benedikt Kattner/Anton Menner 2:1 (19-21, 21-19, 15-12) in a disputed and exciting game. The Russian duo certified its physical power in a match decided by their powerful blocks and attacks. The last match of the day in the men’s tournament presented the clash between two of the main candidates to the final. Poland’s Sebastian Kaczmarek/Lukasz Kaczmarek initiated the successful day for the Polish delegation by beating the silver medalists from the 2013 FIVB U19 World Championship, Norway’s Nikolai Huus/Christian Sørum, 2:0 (21-16, 21-18), producing one the biggest upsets of the quarterfinals.
In the women’s tournament, as the competition awaits the result of the last quarterfinal to be played on Sunday, the competition stated the powerful form of the candidates for victory. Switzerland’s Nina Betschart/Nicole Eiholzer had previously declared that their goal in Vilnius was to reach the final, and so far they are completing every step. After solving all the rounds in the competition in a landslide, the Swiss squad brilliantly confirmed their status of one of the strongest teams in the tournament, ever since no other squad was able to claim against the two 18-year old girls more than 17 points in a set. “In the last five international tournaments, we have been eliminated in the quarterfinals, so finally we are in the semis!” declared an exultant Nicole Eiholzer. “It is a great feeling. I just hope that tomorrow we will be able to play good Volleyball”.
The Swiss pair will face in the semifinals Austria’s Nadine and Teresa Strauss who beat Russia’s Ksenia Dabizha/Anna Gorbunova 2:1 (21-16, 16-21, 15-13) in one of the most disputed games of the quarterfinals. The Austrian sisters used their good rapport to qualify for the last day of the tournament, appearing as one of the surprises of the competition, at only 17 years of age. “I am so happy that we won”, said Nadine Strauss. “We were facing a very difficult team, as Russia is so strong, but we played very well, making no mistakes”. Her twin sister was optimistic for the semifinal. “We know that Switzerland is a strong team but it is a semifinal and it is all open. We want a medal!” added Teresa Strauss. The third spot in the semifinals was earned by Poland’s Karolina Baran/Jagoda Gruszczynska who beat Czechs Nicole Dostalova/Katerina Valkova 2:0 (21-16, 21-19), in a match controlled by the 2012 U20 U18 CEV European Champion and her teammate, Baran (who is a silver medalist from the 2012 U19 FIVB World Championship).
The last day of competition in Vilnius will continue the emotions and surprises and will proclaim the new Under 20 Beach Volleyball European champions.
Follow the action of the tournament this Sunday live on LAOLA1.tv
Click here for more information, including detailed schedule and results.
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