Malbun, Liechtenstein, April 1, 2017. Philip Gabathuler/Alexei Strasser, the well-known stars of Swiss and international Beach Volleyball, made their debut on the CEV Snow Volleyball European Tour. At the sixth stop of the 2017 edition of the Tour, which started on Saturday in Malbun, Liechtenstein, they managed three wins in a row to find out that they could be as successful on the snow as they are on the sand.
Without any points for the Snow Volleyball European Ranking, Gabathuler/Strasser were drawn into #20 out of the 21 teams in the men’s main draw for the competition in the cosy Liechtenstein Alpine village. They shrugged it off and took off on their victory quest.
The Swiss duo started with a 2-0 (11-9, 11-6) shutout of Germany’s Jonathan Januschke/Johannes Kessler. Then they mastered a tough, but sweet 2-1 (11-9, 8-11, 11-9) victory over another German team – fourth-seeded Florian Schweikart/Yannick Klement. In the third round, Gabathuler/Strasser had to survive another three-setter, this time against fifth-seeded Swiss compatriots Philipp Rageth/Denis Mösle, to triumph with a 2-1 (11-4, 6-11, 11-5) win.
“We are absolutely enjoying it!” Alexei Strasser exclaimed. “That is the reason why we registered for this tournament. The atmosphere is great.”
“We are already feeling quite tired,” Philip Gabathuler added with a smile. “It was quite difficult in the morning, because to play on the snow was pretty new for us. In the afternoon it was smoother, but it required more energy.”
On Sunday morning, Gabathuler/Strasser will have a tough task to accomplish, as the top-seeded Polish pair Michal Matyja/Piotr Janiak will try to stop the Swiss team’s winning streak in a battle for a spot in the semis. The other two unbeaten teams, second-seeded Piotr Groszek/Tomasz Cwiertnia from Poland and eleventh-seeded Jens Ellmrich/Maik Winkler from Germany, will cross their ways for the other direct semi-final spot from the winners’ bracket.
Another four Swiss pairs, two from Germany and one each from Romania and Liechtenstein are still alive in the losers’ bracket hoping to get back into medal contention on Sunday.
“Tomorrow we have a good opponent. It is going to be difficult against the Polish guys, but we will try our best. The most important thing is to have fun on the court...,” Gabathuler commented. “First, we will go to the Players’ Party tonight!”
For further information on the European Tour, click here or visit SnowVolleyball.com.