Vienna, Austria, July 28, 2017 - Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen of The Netherlands began their quest for another world championship gold medal here Friday by defeating a team from Uruguay in an opening Pool J match at the 2017 FIVB Beach Volleyball Championships presented by A1.
Seeded 10th in the competition, Brouwer and Meeuwsen posted a 2-0 (21-15, 22-20) win in 31 minutes over 39th-seeded South American qualifiers Marco Cairus/Mauricio Vieyto of Uruguay. The Dutchmen are returning to international competition after missing the last FIVB World Tour event last week in Poland due to Brouwer’s leg injury.
Brouwer and Meeuwsen, who captured the 2013 gold medal at the FIVB World Championships in Stare Jablonki, Poland, will play 34th-seeded Adrian Carambula/Alex Ranghieri in their next Pool J match Sunday as the Dutch will be seeking their seventh-straight FIVB World Tour win over the Italians.
Michal Bryl and Grzegorz Fijalek of Poland joined the Dutchmen atop the Pool J standings after defeating Carambula/Ranghieri 2-0 (21-18, 21-15) in 40 minutes Friday. The Polish pair will play Cairus and Vieyto Sunday followed by a match with Brouwer and Meeuwsen Tuesday.
The US$1-million FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships presented by A1 continues Saturday with 28 matches scheduled on three courts at the state-of-the art venue at Donauinsel with the focal point of the action and entertainment being held with a picturesque view of the Danube River and the lively atmosphere of the Beach Village.
A total of 216-matches will be played over a 10-day period at the world championships where the winning men’s and women’s teams will each split the $60,000 first-place prizes. The women’s medal matches will be played August 5 and the men’s August 6. With 96 teams from 40 countries in the competition, pool play will highlight the first six days of play with the featured court being the 10,000-seat Red Bull Beach Arena.
