Lome, Togo, July 1, 2012 - Burundi men and Rwanda women captured the gold medals at the CAVB Junior Beach Volleyball Cup following after both sides saw of South African in the finals at Lome Beach in Togo on Sunday.
It was the first ever gold medals for the winners in the history of volleyball.
Togo men and Nigeria women clinched the bronze medals with wins against Sierra Leone and Guinea Conakry respectively in the third place matches.
Early on Saturday the qualifiers to the FIVB SWATCH Junior World Championship were revealed as Burundi, South Africa, hosts Togo, Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana junior mens teams book their tickets to Canada, while Rwanda, South Africa, Nigeria, Guinea Conakry, Ghana and Sierra Leone women sealed their place at the prestigious FIVB tournament.
Tandems from each of the six countries now move on to Halifax, Canada for the competition, which will run from August 29 to September 2.
The countries are awaiting final confirmation from the FIVB concerning the eligibility of players. this will be provided 45 days prior to the tournament starting.
Men's competition
Burundi beat South Africa 2-0
Dark horses Burundi gained revenge over South Africa who defeated them in the pool match by winning the final 2-0 (21-16, 21-11). Burundi pairing Briand Mugabowingabo/Bruce Dukundane learned their lesson after losing the first match as they came back quickly after being down 3-5. Mugabowingabo used his efficient service to disturb the South African duo of Dean Layters/Steven Van Nelson to draw for the first time 7-7. The draw continued till 9-9 when Dukundane blocked and his side eventually ground out the opening set.
The second set saw Burundi up the pressure, with South Africa committing a lot of reception and attacking errors.. Mugabowingabo continued to hammer the opponents with his unstoppable hits to advance 18-8 before they won the set 25-11 and the match in straight sets.
Bronze Medal Match: Togo Beat Sierra Leone 2-0
Hosts Togo, aided by their home crowd, overpowered Sierra Leone 2-0 (21-19, 25-23) in a fantastic match full of thrills and action. Antonine Agbegninou/Florent Apezoumon started well and led 10-8 before Sierra Leone’s pair Patrick Lombi/Momodu Samura regained their attacking strategy. Agbegninou scored several crucial points to stay in competition till they won the set 21-19.The second set was more exciting, especially after Agbegninou and Apezoumon started to spike and arrange the block. They led most of the set but Togo came back and saved three set points before they won the set 25-21.
5th position match: Ghana beat Cote d’Ivoire 2-0
Ghana saw off Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 (21-10, 21-15) to secure fifth place, leaving their opponents in sixth, but both teams booked their tickets to the World Championships. With the better service of Aaron Djarnie/ Setor Zigah, Ghana succeeded to overwhelm the action, especially in the first set. But when Ivorian double Aquilas Kobon/Andre Adjoua came back they caused a lot of trouble for the Ghanaian pair in the second set.
7th position match: Guinea Conakry beat Gabon 2-0
Guinea Conakry cruised past Gabon in the seventh-place match 2-0 (21-14, 21-16). Guinea finished seventh, while Gabon ended bottom of the pile.
Women's competition
Final: Rwanda beat South Africa 2-0
Rwanda surprised the crowd with a highly organized performance in the final against favourites South Africa to clinch a valuable 2-0 (21-15, 23-21) win to gain the first ever gold medal in the history of volleyball in their country. South Africa’s pairing of Liezle Petersen/Brittiny Deelcarme started well, leading 4-2 at the beginning, but Rwanda quickly rebounded with a proper reception and backline defense from both Denyse Mutatsimpundu and Charlotte Nzayisenga. With more motivation from the Rwandan double they were more concentrating on every ball as they used the reception mistakes of their opponent to win the set 21-15.
South Africa started the second set better as they regained their attacking power through the spikes of Deelcarme and the better reception of Petersen. Rwanda again showed a lot of fight for each ball in defence to save three set points before winning the set 23-21 and the match in straight-sets.
Bronze medal Match: Nigeria beat Guinea Conakry 2-0
Nigerian pair Isabela Eyetsonetan/Jummai Bitrus found it easy to cruise past Guinea’s Amie Kante/Aissatou Kamano 2-0 (21-12, 21-10) through their good spikes at the net. They also used their service to penetrate their opponents block regularly, especially in the first set. Nigeria won the bronze medal while Guinea finished fourth.
5th position match: Ghana beat Sierra Leone 2-1
Ghana captured the fifth place after a thrilling encounter with Sierra Leone, winning 2-1 (18-21, 21-18, 15-9). Although Sierra Leone’s Hawa Kargbo/Josephine Sasay won the first set 21-18 and looked close to winning, Ghana’s Ellen Blebo and Betrice Ampadu were more aggressive in the second set and then in the tiebreak to win the fifth position.
7th position match: Cote d'Ivoire beat Gabon 2-0
Cote d’Ivoire pair Mankan Sidibe/Cany Koffi trounced Gabon’s Dorothee Abessolo/Marva Badole 2-0 (21-12, 21-12) to claim seventh place.
Finals Results
Men
Final: Burundi v South Africa 2-0 (21-16, 21-11)
Bronze medal: Togo v Sierra Leone 2-0 (21-19, 25-23)
5th place: Ghana v Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 (21-10, 21-15)
7th place: Guinea Conakry v Gabon 2-0 (21-14, 21-16)
Women
Final: Rwanda v South Africa 2-0 (21-15, 23-21)
Bronze medal: Nigeria v Guinea Conakry 2-0 (21-12, 21-10)
5th place: Ghana v Sierra Leone 2-1 (18-21, 21-18, 15-9)
7th place: Cote d’Ivoire v Gabon 2-0 (21-12, 21-12)
Final ranking
Men
1. Burundi
2. South Africa
3. Togo
4. Sierra Leone
5. Ghana
6. Cote d’Ivoire
7. Guinea Conakry
8. Gabon
Women
1. Rwanda
2. South Africa
3. Nigeria
4. Guinea Conakry
5. Ghana
6. Sierra Leone
7. Cote d’Ivoire
8. Gabon
9. Zimbabwe