Karla Borger and Britta Büthe of Germany remain unbeaten in Pool D

Karla Borger and Britta Büthe of Germany kept the hopes up for the home fans in the Pool Play of the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Berlin smart Grand Slam, which is currently underway.

Photo credit: FIVB

Borge and Büthe took on Italy’s Marta Menegatti/ Viktoria Orsi Toth on Thursday. The home duo had the advantage of local fans and familiar conditions, which enabled them to win against visiting Italian team 2-0 (21-17, 21-12).  The Germans completed the winning streak of three matches and finished the round robin as top team in the pool D.

However, the  two other German teams couldn't make their mark and finished last in their pool.

“I was a bit surprised that we won this match with these numbers, especially the difference in the second set, because it did not feel like that”, said Borger.

“We made many mistakes. I had some aces, but also a lot of mistakes in service, served a lot without pressure. So I think we have to work on some stuff. They stopped playing, maybe because we had some lucky balls, in, out, touching the net. I think t
hat took them a little bit out of the game.”

Ross-Walsh aim for Gold at the Berlin smart Grand Slam - Beach Volleyball

The US pairing of April Ross and Kerri Walsh secured the top position at the Moscow Grand Slam last week. In the next run, the duo seems right on track for another gold medal in the ongoing Berlin Smart Grand Slam.

They finished the final round robin match in straight sets and defeated Australia’s Louise Bawden and Taliqua Clancy 2-0 (21-15, 21-15). 

April Ross - FIVB Photo Gallery

In the pool matches, April Ross/ Kerri Walsh completely white-washed and finished on the top level. They received a a forfeit from fellow Americans Pavlik/Fopma in their opening pool match and scored  2-0 (21-12, 25-23) win over Polish team Brzostek/Kolosinka on Wednesday. 

The winning American duo successfully advance to the second knockout round unbeaten. 

The Berlin smart Grand Slam continues on Friday with the final pool round and first knockout round for the men and the first and second elimination rounds for the women.

Berlin is hosting a FIVB World Tour women’s event for the 9th time and a men’s event for the 15th time. After the $800.000 Berlin smart Grand Slam the FIVB World Tour continues its seven-event swing through Europe.

There are three more double-gender FIVB Grand Slams on the European continent: the FIVB Stavanger Grand Slam in Norway (June 24-28), the FIVB Gstaad Grand Slam in Switzerland (July 8-13) and finally the FIVB Transavia Grand Slam, played in three different cities in the Netherlands (July 15-20), but based in The Hague.

Colombia Women’s Volleyball Team secures spot in 2015 FIVB World Grand Prix

Maria Alejandra Marin

Women’s volleyball squads from Colombia and Peru came into contest on Tuesday, June 17, 2014. Colombian girls hammered Peru 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-20). The victory enabled Colombia to secure a spot in next year’s FIVB World Grand Prix.

It will be the first time ever that Colombia will join the Grand Prix. Moreover, the team will also play for the seventh position at the XIII Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at Carlos Martinez Balmori Multisport Hall of Autonomous State University of Hidalgo.

In the past, Colombia participated in the cup twice. The team had finished eleventh in 2012 and 9th in 2013. On the other hand, Peruvian team took part in eight tournaments with a silver medal in 2010 but an eighth place in 2013.

Brazilian Mauro Marasciulo, coach of Colombia, expressed great joy after the first ever victory of Colombia over Peru in an international senior tournament.

 “The Federation is making a sacrifice and a great work to develop the girls who last year qualified to the U-20 world championship and now to the Grand Prix. The future is in their hands.”

An elated Maria Alejandra Marin, captain of Colombia, said: “We are happy because to win the right to go to the Grand Prix is something unprecedented for us. We know Peru is a tough rival and we were studying them and got the win.”’

Natalia Malaga, coach of Peru: “The satisfaction is for the team with the best result and Peru didn’t play in spite of being the team with the higher level. But unfortunately, putting aside the technical part, my players didn’t show the personal part and their attitude was bad, something that disappointed me.”

Shoulder injury forces Diana Malinova to withdraw - Beach Volleyball News

Photo credit: FIVB

Bulgaria's reigning national champion and former Balkan champion Diana Malinova withdrew from the Final Four matches of the last National Beach Volleyball Tour event in Kazanlak two weeks ago.She sustained a shoulder injury, which forced her to take a break from the game. Hence, Diana Malinova and her partner Rusena Slancheva will stay off the court unless her recovery.

She is considered one of the most decorated female beach volleyball players in Bulgaria. She will have to miss the 1st Round of the 2014-2016 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup, where the southern European country hosts the battles in Pool G this coming weekend in Kardzhali.

For the upcoming matches in Pool G, where Bulgaria is in the company of Albania, Finland and Serbia, Diana Malinova will be replaced by Irena Mishonova as Rusena Slancheva’s teammate.

“I feel strong pain in my shoulder, which does not allow me to take part in this important tournament,” Malinova explained.  “I hope to recover and return to the court as fast as possible.  I wish the girls the best of luck in this competition.  I really hope to be part of the national team again soon…”

FIVB World League Group 3 Semifinal schedule announced - Volleyball News

The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) has recently announced the semifinal schedule for Group 3 of the World League. The news was released from the FIVB headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

According to the schedule, teams from Cuba and China will contest their skills in the first semifinal on 28th June. The Bursa Cengiz Gollu Volleyball Hall in Turkey will provide the backdrop for the match.

Next up, home team Turkey will take on Slovakia in the second semifinal.

The 2014 edition of the FIVB World League will feature a total of 28 teams, which will be divided into three groups, with Group 3 consisting of Pools F and G, both with four teams each.

The round-robin play of the tournament was played in the first two weeks of this month. As a result, Cuba won Pool F with a 5-1 record, whereas Turks were second with a 4-2 record. Mexico (2-4) were third and Tunisia (1-5) fourth.

Nonetheless, Turkey is already confirmed for the Final Four for being the hosts of the competition. It means the second-placed team in Pool G would take the final spot.

On the other hand, China topped Pool G with a 5-1 record, followed by Slovakia (3-3), Spain (2-4) and Puerto Rico (2-4). Slovakia qualified as the best second-placed team.

The Final Four for Pools C, D and E will take place on the weekend of July 11-13, with the winner there advancing to the Final Six for Pools A and B from July 16 to 20.

VCP Beach Volleyball Grassroots course held in Zimbabwe

In the recent memory, the capital of Zimbabwe hosted a VCP Beach Volleyball Grassroots course. The city of Harare served a great host to the attendees of the course. The course completed it run from June 10 to 14.

The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) sent Yaniv Norman, an experienced instructor, to supervise the activity. Mr. E.K. Kondo, the 2nd Vice President of the Zimbabwe Volleyball Federation also played an influential role in conduction the course.

Around 25 participants from all over the country showed up and benefitted from the opportunity. Everyone seemed kind of motivated and showed great interest. The participants learned both the theoretical and practical aspects of the course. 

The participants were mainly physical education teachers and volleyball coaches, and for most of them, it was their first experience of beach volleyball. On the final day of the course, a beach volleyball tournament was organized in order to implement some of the topics that had been taught. This allowed the participants to apply their playing, refereeing and organizing skills to game situations. 

The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Berlin smart Grand Slam kicks off

The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Berlin smart Grand Slam is just around the corner. The tournament is scheduled to start off on Tuesday, June 17 and the Beach Volleyball madness will be continued till 22^nd June.

The world’s best beach volleyball teams have headed to Germany this week to showcase their mesmerizing skills on the centre court. The city centre, at the Washingtonplatz is ready to host the thrilling competition.

“We have the best beach volleyball players in the world coming here, in one of the most beautiful cities, and an amazing venue. This will be a world class event for both players and spectators.”

Teams from Germany will have a great edge over outsiders as they will get huge support from local fans. However, there will be world’s finest players and it will be great to see the matches.

 “Our sport becomes more and more popular and has the attention of a lot of people”, said Matisik, who won bronze at the World Championships with Jonathan Erdmann last year. “Playing beach volleyball in the heart of Berlin and near the government quarters will be a special experience for all of us athletes.”

Last year’s silver medallist Katrin Holtwick: “I wouldn’t say no to first place this time. Supported by our home crowd we will try to deliver a similar performance. Holtwick and her partner Ilka Semmler lost the final last year to Brazil’s Talita Antunes and Taiana Lima.

Watch out for your favourite players and teams. Cheers

Melissa Humana-Paredes and Taylor Pischke settle for bronze

It is the second year in a row that Canada’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Taylor Pischke ended up third in the competition. They won the bronze medal at FIVB
U23 World Championship on Sunday, while playing at Myslowice, Poland.

Australia defeated the Canadian side in the semifinal on Saturday. However, the pairing of Humana-Paredes and Taylor Pischke came back with a 2-1 (21-18, 14-21, 15-10) win over Finland’s Taru Lahti and Anniina Parkkinen in the third position match.

 Pischke: “To be honest it was pretty tough to come out and bounce back and play that third place match, cause obviously we did not want to be there. It was a tough loss against Australia. We had a lot of chances to win that one.” 

After coming out strong against Finland, the Canadian girls let loose a little in the second set and the Finish girls took their chances to win it. In the tiebreak Humana-Paredes and Pischke got their act together and claimed third place after all. 

“It was important we came back and won the bronze”, said Pischke. “Not the colour we wanted, but a medal is a medal and we are happy.”

Australia’s Laird/Artacho earn gold at the FIVB Beach Volleyball U23 World Championships

The dynamic and charismatic pairing to Nicole Laird and Mariafe Artacho from Australia put up great show on the sands of Myslowice, Poland. The Aussies posted 2-1 (21-19, 17-21, 15-7) victory over  USA’s Lara Dykstra/ Jace Pardon in the final showdown of the FIVB Beach Volleyball U23 World  Championships.

The winning duo settled for gold and received great amount of applause from fans all over the world. The American team played a clever game with cuts and dinks around Laird’s big block and pushed the Australians to the limit.

“We knew it was going to be tough, USA always comes to play”, said Artacho, who added a second medal to her bronze at the Junior World Champs in 2012. “They are very competitive, we knew it was going to be a three-setter.”

USA fought back strong after dropping the opening set and pushed the match into a tiebreak. “We dropped concentration a bit, made a few errors”, said Laird about the second set. “But USA leapt into the game as well. All credit where there is credit due. But we were prepared for a long game.”

With strong serving and placed attacks down the line Artacho made the difference in the third set. At the first Australian set point Laird scored the winning point with her serve.

“Mariafe has a little bit of magic in her back pocket”, said Laird about her partner. “She’s had that her whole volleyball career and I never get stressed in the back of the sets, because I feel save that she will pull something out. It was a fight, but we got back.” 

Australia downs Canada to move to the finals of FIVB Beach Volleyball U23 World Championships

What a terrific performance by the Australian duo Nicole Laird and Mariafe Artacho defeated, who managed to beat last year’s bronze medalists Melissa Humana-Paredes and Taylor Pischke on Sunday.

They posted 2-1(18-21, 22-20, 15-9) and secured berth in the final showdown of the FIVB Beach Volleyball U23 World Championships.

The Aussies put up a great effort and proved to be better in the game.  They dropped the first set but came up with a better strategy in the following two sets. Canadian duo attacked from different sides but failed to return in the game.

“It feels a bit unreal”, said Laird, who will play her first medal match ever. “There was nothing to lose at the end of the second. I thought we might as well find a way to win and it paid off.”

Artacho already won bronze at the Junior World Championships in 2012, but this will be her first final too. “It’s amazing”, she said. “It’s an amazing experience, and we are going all the way now. I did not even remember we were behind in the second. For us it was just take it to the end, to the last whistle. So we were patient, just one at a time and stuck together.”

Iran hammers Brazil in the FIVB World League match

Brazilian and Iranian men's volleyball squads battled out their skills in Pool A of the FIVB World League on Friday. The latter proved to be better and sent Brazil to defeat in a five-set thriller 3-2 (18-25, 27-25, 20-25, 25-17, 15-9).

Iran lost their opening Pool A match against Brazil 3-2 in Brazil last week before routing the Olympic silver medallists 3-0 in their second match. On home turf in Tehran on Friday, the Iranians recovered from 0-1 and 1-2 to edge the Brazilians 3-2 (18-25, 27-25, 20-25, 25-17, 15-9). The local fans supported the team and backed up with screams and shouts.

“Most volleyball experts described Iran as the weakest team in the World League, but the reality is something different,” Iran captain Saeid Marouf said. "We have always been backed by the fans, who double our motivation to win, even against the world champions Brazil. I believe the engines of volleyball in Iran are working very well.”

Canada celebrates 3-0 win over Cuba in Women's Pan American Cup - Volleyball News

The dynamic women's volleyball team from Canada had an impressive 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 25-21) victory over Cuban counterparts. The vicotry improved Canada to 3-0 in Pool A. The Mexico city hosted the match on Friday.

Canada's Kyla Richey and Lisa Barclay showed impressive performance and added 11 and 10 points, respectively. They were the top-scorers from Canadian side, while Lucille Charuk and Marissa Field each added eight tallies. Field had 3 blocks to lead Canada to a 6-3 margin in the blocking category.

Cuban Melissa Vargas put a great effort as she concluded with a match-high 20 points in the losing cause.

In the next run, Canada is scheduled to meet host Mexico on Saturday. The team spirits are high, but Mexico is likely to give Canada a tough competition.

Argentina earns victory over Japan at the FIVB World League – Volleyball News

The men clad in sky blue and white shirts bagged a great victory by defeating Japan in Pool D of the FIVB World League. Team Argentina stayed on the winning course from start to end and improved its record to 4-3. They captured all three sets 25-21, 25-20, 25-15 and stunned the home audience at Komaki Park Arena in Komaki, Japan.

Argentina was supported by Lucas Ocampo and Sebastian Sole, who scored 16 and 10 points respectively. On the other hand, Yu Koshikawa struggled for Japan with 12 points, while Kunihiro Shimizu added 10. Nonetheless, the team Japan failed to subdue the stronger opponent.

Both teams started out well and displayed a great show. Japanese side led the score initially, but Argentina got hold of the game later on. Japan tried to outdo Argentina but dropped the opening set 21-25.

The visiting team continued with winning pace in the second and improved to 2-0. In the third, Ocampo’s spike put Argentina to a 6-5 lead. Japan fought back to go up 7-6 on a Koshikawa spike. A reception error by Japan saw Argentina up 8-7 at the first TTO. Chijiki could not handle an Argentina serve and it was 13-8 as Japan struggled to maintain contact. Argentina was up 16-11 at the second TTO. Japan took a timeout while trailing 18-12. Martin Ramos connected with a spike for 22-13 as Argentina moved to close out the match. A Koshikawa spike made it 22-15 but the outcome appeared inevitable. Argentina finished it out with one final spike 25-15

Portugal beats Korea in Pool E of the FIVB World League – Volleyball News

Men’s volleyball team from Portugal claimed 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 15-25, 25-20) victory over
Korea this Saturday. The Korean city Ulsan provided backdrop for the match, but the local fans
were greatly disappointed.

With this particular win, Portugal improved to 3-2 in Pool E of the FIVB World League.

In the opening set of the match, both teams had a lot of service misses which affected the run of the game. Jeon helped Korea stay close to 22-21 but too many mistakes in the closing moments gave an edge to Portugal, and they took the set 25-21.

Portugal continued to have the upper hand in the following set and extended their lead to 2-0.
Nevertheless, the Koreans fought back and managed to win the third set of the match with a
lead of 10 point 25-15. The happiness was short-lived as Portugal used their blocking to fight
back in the fourth set. Valdir Sequeira attacked well from the right and led Portugal to an
amazing 3-1 victory.

Alexandre Ferreira scored 16 points for Portugal, while Jeon Kwang-In was Korea’s top scorer
with 15 points. Portuguese team led in blocking points (12-3) and service points (7-5). Moreover, the visitors committed 29 errors to hosts’ 33.

The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Moscow Grand Slam starts - Beach Volleyball News

The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Moscow Grand Slam started in a great manner on Thursday. The tournament was opened with men’s and women’s main draws, which revealed that the big names didn’t have it all their own way.

In the men's section, the reigning world champions Robert Meeuwsen and Alexander Brouwer couldn't perform up to the mark in their opener. On the other hand, the returning female duo of Juliana Felisberta and Maria Antonelli from Brazil defeated there home fellows and fourth seeds Maria-Clara and Carolina Salgado.

Nevertheless, the leading male team from Russia, Konstantin Semenov and Viacheslav Krasilnikov and female duo, Evgenia Ukolova and Maria Prokopeva showcased terrific performance and remained unbeaten.

As day rounded off, the women’s pools had taken shape after two matches, with the first and second seeds Brazil's Talita Antunes and Taiana Lima and US April Ross and Kerri Walsh winning twice. Both men and women complete pool play on Friday, with the men playing twice and the women once. 

Spaniards Lobato/Soria down Humana-Paredes/Pischke of Canada - Beach Volleyball

The city of Myslowice in Poland hosted a wonderful match of the FIVB Beach Volleyball U23 World Championships on Thursday, June 12th, 2014.

The dynamic duo of Angela Lobato Herrero and Paula Soria Gutierrez secured an important win by defeating counterparts from Canada. They earned victory over their biggest competitors for top seed in pool D: Taylor Pischke  and Melissa Humana-Paredes. Lobato/Soria were down one set, but successfully managed to come back and win the tiebreak: 19-21, 21-18, 15-13.

“This was a very important win”, Lobato said. “Because if we win tomorrow we will pass as the first team. We are really happy because it was a very tough match, as was the match this morning against Russia.”