Prague, Czech Republic, May 22, 2014 – Germany has dominated the first day of main draw at
the hot and sunny courts of the FIVB World Tour Beach Volleyball Prague Open. Three
out of the four German teams at the women’s only event are leading their pool
after two matches on Thursday. Shanghai champions Laura
Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst and vice-world champions Karla Borger and Britta
Büthe managed to do that with straight wins. Katrin Holtwick and Ilka Semmler
lost one set to Swiss team Goricanec/Hüberli, but still ended the day on top of
their pool. Brazilian stars Maria
Antonelli and Juliana Felisberta had a slow start against home team
Bonnerova/Hermannova, losing the first set on centre court in Stvanice stadium.
But the Fuzhou and Puerto Vallarta silver medallists recovered and booked a 2-1
(15-21 21-12 15-10) win after all. In the afternoon Antonelli
and Juliana also defeated Dumbauskaite/Povilaityte from Lithuania (21-11 21-14).
“I am happy with our play”, said Antonelli. “I think we can win a medal here
and I hope it’s going to be gold.” Top seeded Czech team
Kristyna Kolocova and Marketa Slukova delighted the home crowd with two solid
wins over Dutch Van der Hoeven/Smit (21-14 21-19) and Kolosinska/Brzostek from
Poland (21-13 21-12). “We are glad that we
started this tournament well”, Slukova said. “Overall we did great in all
aspects. And I am excited that a lot of people came to watch us. It propels us
forward.” Italy’s
Gioria and Giombini upset Xue/Xia at Prague Open
Italy’s Daniela Gioria and
Laura Giombini caused the first upset at the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour
Prague Open on Thursday.
In their second pool match the Italians, ranked 21st, defeated the Fuzhou and
Puerto Vallarta bronze medallists Chen Xue and Xinyi Xia in two sets (22-20
21-19). Read
more
Dutch debutant Jessica Smit
celebrates birthday on Prague Open centre court
Dutch debutant Jessica Smit
did not win her first match at the FIVB World Tour Prague Open on Thursday, but
it felt like a party anyway. That's because she got to celebrate her 21st
birthday on centre court and make her World Tour main draw debut at the same
time.
Smit, a former volleyball player with no previous World Tour experience, teamed
up with 29-year old Roos van der Hoeven last September. Van der Hoeven, who has
been playing on the World Tour since 2008, had just recovered from a knee
injury. Read
more
Time for change at the FIVB
Beach Volleyball Prague Open
The FIVB Beach Volleyball
World Tour visited Prague four times before, in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012, but
it has always been a men’s only event.
This year Stvanice stadium hosts a women’s tournament for the first time in
history. The reason for this change is simple: the most famous Czech pair
Kristyna Kolocova and Marketa Slukova deserves it. Read
more
The inaugural women’s only
FIVB Prague Open continues on Friday at 9.00 with the third and final pool play
match. In the afternoon the numbers two and three of each pool compete in the
first elimination round.
The pool winners earn a bye
and move straight into the second knockout round on Saturday. The semifinals
and final are scheduled for Sunday. The Prague Open winners split $11,000, the
silver medallists $8,000 and the bronze $6,000.
The Prague Open is the
fourth event on the 2014 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour calendar and the
third Open of this season. The next stop after Prague is the double gender
Anapa Open in Russia (May 27-June 1).
FIVB
Prague Open Tournament Page
FIVB
Prague Open Main Draw
FIVB
Prague Open Pool Standings
FIVB
Prague Open Qualification
FIVB
World Tour Twitter Account