01/08/2015 10:54
Ludwig secures eighth European medal, chases third gold in final with Russia
2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship - Final
Klagenfurt, Austria, August 1, 2015. Germany’s Laura Ludwig/Kira Walkenhorst and Russia’s Evgenia Ukolova/Ekaterina Birlova will be vying for gold and the fictional crown of Europe’s ‘Queens of the Beach’ later on Saturday afternoon after opening the programme on the next-to-last day of the 2015 CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship Final on the shores of the Wörthersee. Ukolova and Birlova stamped a fairly comfortable 21-17, 21-13 win over Kinga Kolosinska and Monika Brzostek of Poland before Ludwig/Walkenhorst – gold medal winners from the FIVB Grand Slam in Yokohama last week – had to work a little more as their opponents, Slovakia’s Dominika Nestarcova and Natalia Dubovcova, delivered another good performance before the Germans sealed their 21-18, 21-18 win.
This way Ludwig secured her eighth European Championship medal, an all-time record, and on Saturday afternoon will be chasing her third continental crown after topping the charts already in 2008 and 2010 – both times on home soil – with former partner Sara Goller. Ukolova/Birlova will be trying to claim Russia’s second gold in history after Uryadova/Shiryaeva won the title in 2006 whereas the eventual winners of the bronze medal match will secure the first ever podium finish for Poland or Slovakia in the competition since its establishment back in 1994.
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Russia’s Ekaterina Birlova and Evgenia Ukolova claimed the first semi-final match on Saturday morning as actions started in Klagenfurt at 9 am under ideal weather conditions. A sell-out crowd witnessed Ukolova/Birlova fight hard for the right to play their second final in the capital of Carinthia. Back in 2012, as Birlova still went by her maiden name Khomyakova, they topped the charts of the FIVB Grand Slam on their way to the London Olympics but a year later they lost a dramatic quarterfinal match with the Schwaiger sisters to miss out on a spot in the semis of the 2013 European Championship. The two sets of the semi-final with Kolosinska/Brzostek followed a similar pattern with the score remaining close in the early stages before Ukolova and Birlova slowly but surely imposed their quality and physical prowess to break away and seal a 21-17, 21-13 win. Poland’s Kinga Kolosinska and Monika Brzostek played with courage and delivered some spectacular actions but they have to be content to play for bronze, which nevertheless would be the first ever medal for their country in a ‘senior’ women’s European Championship. As for Ukolova and Birlova, they will be trying to follow in the footsteps of Natalya Uryadova and Alexandra Shiryaeva who were crowned European champions back in 2006 in Scheveningen, The Netherlands.
“I feel overwhelmed with joy,” Evgenia Ukolova said after the match, “and still can’t understand and fully realise that we have made it to the big final. Ekaterina was out for about one year as she had a baby but we are step by step improving and finding back our rhythm. Now we want to enjoy the moment and of course will be going for the gold medal.”
The second semi-final was a much closer race but Germany’s Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst eventually lived up to their status as pre-favourites of the tournament stamping a double 21-18 set win in their matchup with Slovakia’s sensation Natalia Dubovcova and Dominika Nestarcova. After a close start, Dubovcova got the right edge for the outsiders as she kept on serving on Walkenhorst and this way she moved the score to 6:4 and 7:5 in their favour. However, Germany clawed back with a massive run of 11 points versus only four for the Slovaks to make it 15:10 with Walkenhorst being absolutely outstanding at the net and Ludwig cementing her role and fame as one of the best defenders on the circuit. Slovakia attempted a comeback with a 4-2 positive series but could not quite close their gap with Ludwig and Walkenhorst changing pace again towards the end to seal their first 21-18 set win. The second set was another close race, at least in the early stages, and the teams sided out up to 13 all before Germany claimed a small lead at 16:14. Dubovcova and Nestarcova responded drawing level at 16 and 17 but the final rush fully belonged to the Germans who cruised to another 21-18 to secure their spot in the ‘grand finale’ of the tournament.
“It always feels great to play before this crowd and even though at the beginning you may feel a bit of tension and nervousness, we did our job well and now we look forward to playing the gold medal match,” Walkenhorst said. Ludwig was of the same opinion: “I have many medals already but the only one I am chasing here is gold.”
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