Xiamen, China, April 14, 2016 – Chinese star player Xue Chen, who has reached top four at Olympic Games twice in a row, is fighting for a ticket to Rio with her young partner Xia Xinyi.
“Our top priority is to get as many points as possible and try to qualify for the Olympic Games,” Xue said after teaming up with Xia to win a pair of pool matches here on Thursday in the women’s Main Draw of the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Xiamen Open.
Eight years ago, Xue captured the bronze medal at the Beijing Games at the age of 19 with Zhang Xi. Four years later, Xue/Zhang finished fourth at the London Games. After the retirement of Zhang in 2013, Xue began to work with Xia, who was born in 1997.
Xue/Xia took the ninth place in their first tournament together at the Xiamen Grand Slam in October 2013 before winning gold at Phuket and Durban at the end of the same season. However, the new combination suffered a setback in 2015 when Xue received an injury to her shoulder at the Fuzhou Open in April.
“I was in rehabilitation for the most of the winter and trying to get prepared for this season,” Xue said.
With the Rio Olympic Games coming in a few months, Xue and Xia were in a race against time. “There is no much time left. Every tournament and every match is important for us,” Xue said.
Xue/Xia started their new season early in March and they were at ninth at the Rio Grand Slam and a disappointing 25th one week later at the Vitoria Open. Nevertheless, they soon recovered to capture the trophy at the Asian Championship.
“We need to improve on our combination and find the rhythm of our game,” Xue added.
The 19-year-old Xia was looking forward to her first Olympic Games. “If we can make it to Rio, I will be super excited. We need to work really hard to get a ticket.”