Three teams supported by the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme made it to the podium at the Beach Pro Tour Futures event held in Bujumbura, Burundi. The Spanish women’s pair of Liliana Fernandez and Paula Soria won gold, while the men’s duos of Kevin Cuzmiciov and River Day from Israel and Juan Enrique Bello and Josue Rocha from England clinched silver and bronze, respectively.
The FIVB has invested CHF 72,000 of coach support into England’s beach volleyball national teams since 2021, with Bello and Rocha among the beneficiaries. Men’s and women’s beach volleyball in Israel has also received a boost from Volleyball Empowerment with a coach support project having started last month, totalling an investment of CHF 72,000.
Meanwhile, Spain’s women’s beach volleyball teams have been supported with CHF 180,000 via coach support projects since 2018. The success of this ongoing support is exemplified by Fernandez and Soria’s flawless run in Bujumbura where they claimed gold without dropping a set.
The Spanish team, coached by Marco Pires Stanzani, began their Bujumbura campaign with a 2-0 (21-14, 21-12) victory over the Colombian pair of Galindo Cluadia of Galindo Andrea. A 2-0 (21-9, 21-4) sweep of the home pair of Gynette Kamwemwe and Delly-Drice Kaze in the quarterfinals earned the Spaniards a date with Germany’s Janne Uhl and Paula Schurholz who they beat 2-0 (21-17, 21-8) to reach the final.
In the Sunday final, Fernandez and Soria maintained their unbeaten record after defeating Austrians Eva Freiberger and Stephanie Wiesmeyr 2-0 (21-16, 21-11). Meanwhile, Germany’s Uhl and Schurholz bounced back to claim bronze following a 2-0 (21-9, 21-16) win over Israel’s Yahli Ashush and Michal Barannik.
A total of eight teams drawn from eight countries featured in the women’s event.
Action between Germany and Israel in the men’s final of Beach Pro Tour Bujumbura Futures (Photo credits: FEDERATION BURUNDAISE DE VOLLEYBALL)
The men’s competition attracted 16 entries from 12 countries, and it was the German pair of Richard Peemüller and Tilo Rietschel who emerged victorious after beating Israel’s Kevin Cuzmiciov and River Day 2-1 (21-13, 12-21, 15-11) in the final. Cuzmiciov and Day have been benefitting via the Volleyball Empowerment coach support project that started last month under coach Andrea Savvidis.
After losing 2-1 (21-12, 15-21, 11-15) in the semifinals to eventual champions Peemuller and Rietschel, the Volleyball Empowerment programme-supported Bello and Rocha picked themselves up to beat the Swedish pair of Martin Appelgren and Alexander Annerstedt 2-0 (21-0, 21-0) in the bronze medal match.
Bello and Rocha topped Pool C after defeating Rwanda’s Merci Gisubizo and Patrick Kavalo 2-0 (21-9, 21-8) and Norway’s Stian Opsahl and Torje Thorkildsen 2-0 (21-17, 21-8) to enter the quarterfinals unbeaten. Morocco’s Ousamma El Azhari and Mohammed Yakki put up a brave fight against Bello and Rocha in the quarterfinals but it was the English duo who won 2-0 (21-16, 25-23) to advance to the semifinals where Peemuller and Rietschel halted their run.
Six African countries, namely Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Gambia, Rwanda and Morocco fielded teams in the Bujumbura event.
Gambia, which is also supported by the Volleyball Empowerment programme, reached the quarterfinals but the pair of Pa Alieu Njie and Sainey Jawo were eliminated by Sweden’s Appelgren and Annerstedt who beat them 2-0 (21-14,21-12). Morocco’s El Azhari and Yakki also reached the men’s quarterfinals but lost to Bello and Rocha 2-0.
In the women’s tournament, Burundi’s Karen Noppen and Emmanuelie Ndayikengurukiye, Kamwemwe and Kaze and Kenya’s Gaudencia Makokha and Naomi Too qualified for the quarterfinals but failed to proceed.
Source : fivb.com
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