EuroBeachVolley goes into the final day & Hermannova/Slukova (CZE) at 15h for the podium

At 15h, one of the world’s best teams Hermannova/Slukova (CZE) will be this time around reaching for the Bronze medal.

Jurmala, Latvia. Day 4 of the CEV EuroBeachVolley marked the return to the court of Majori Beach, after 2 days of absence due to the extreme weather conditions experienced in Jurmala, Latvia on Thursday. Back into the lime lights of the Main Court, the teams still in the competition had everything to play for as at the end of the day we would know the Finalists of the Women’s competition and the Semifinalists of the Men’s competition.

With some of the tournaments favorites already out of the race, the attention of the fans turned towards teams that might have their first shot at winning a medal and they seemed to be right.

First chance at a medal

Ranked 10th at the start of the competition, the German duo of Behrens/Tillmann kicked off day 4 for the women with the first quarterfinals match against one of the tournament’s most surprising performers, the Finns Lehtonen/ Ahtiainen, and managed to get a hard fought 2 sets win that saw them through to the semifinals (22-20, 21-18). In the semifinals played later in the day, the Germans managed to eliminate one of the tournament’s favorites, Russian pair Makroguzova/Kholomina (21-19, 21-17), thus reaching the Final of the CEV EuroBeachVolley 2020 at an ealy stage in their partnership. “It’s the second European Championships for us as a team, last time we were 9th and now we are in the final – it’s crazy! This is an awesome experience” said Kim Behrens.

On the other hand, the Swiss pair of Joana Heidrich and Anouk Vergé-Dépré started the tournaments as one of the favorites, being ranked 3rd in the standings. In the quarterfinals they had to face their biggest opposition of the tournament, German superstars Maggie Kozuch and Laura Ludwig. The 3 set thriller (17-21, 21-16, 15-4) where the Swiss came from a set down to win by dominating the tiebreak was a massive confidence boost ahead of their semifinal clash with Hermannova/Slukova of the Czech Republic. That was quite obvious as they managed an inspiring performance that took them into their first Final (21-11, 21-17).  “That’s gonna be our first medal at European Championship, but I want definitely go for gold. I think we made a wonderful job during entire tournament. We were fighting every time and we are so happy that we can still play tomorrow.” said Joana Heidrich.

Schedule of the Medal Matches – 20 September *Local Time

15:00 – Bronze: Makroguzova/Kholomina (RUS) vs Hermannova/Slukova (CZE)
16:00 – GOLD: Behrens/Tillmann (GER) vs Heidrich/Vergé-Dépré (SUI)

All still up for grabs

The men’s day started with the Round of 16 and no major surprise results, except for the early exit of two of the favorites, Plavins/Tocs (LAT) and Windisch/Carambula (ITA). The quarterfinals proved to be no different, with the better ranked teams all managing wins that took them into the top 4 of the CEV EuroBeachVolley 2020. Full results of the day can be found HERE.

Schedule of the Semifinals and Medal Matches – 20 September *Local Time

12:30 – Semifinal I: Mol/Sørum vs Nicolai/Lupo (ITA)
13:45 – Semifinal II: Liamin/Myskiv (RUS) vs Krasilnikov/ Stoyanovskiy (RUS)
17:30 – Bronze Medal Match
19:00 – GOLD Medal Match

All matches from the final day of CEV EuroBeachVolley 2020 will be streamed live exclusively on EuroVolley.TV!

Sources:
CEV – European Volleyball
FIVB – Volleyball World
CVF – Czech Volleyball Federation