The Under-21 Beach Volleyball World Championships, held on the Finikoudes Beach in Larnaca, drew to a close on Sunday, with Poland and Canada claiming the gold medals in the men and women’s categories respectively.
Following on from the tournament’s under-19s edition held in Larnaca in 2012, the coastal city once again hosted the championships with resounding success, as the finals were attended by just over 2,500 spectators.
The matches began on Thursday and ran through until Sunday’s finals – the tournament saw 224 athletes from around the world taking part in the 14th annual edition of the event.
Larnaca has become a lucky stamping ground for Poland’s Michal Bryl and Kacper Kujawiak – the pair won gold on the Finikoudes beach two years ago and despite having not managed a first place finish in any other event in that time, repeated their success this time around as they defeated Russia in the final.
Speaking shortly after being crowned champions, Kujawiak spoke of the support and encouragement they received from the people of Larnaca: “The people here they love us, they help us,” he said.
“I am so happy now. Winning our second gold is something else, unbelievable. Before the match I said to Michal that we shouldn’t be stressed. That we should just play our game and be happy that we are in the final. So we just played,” he concluded.
The bronze medal was picked up by the French duo of Maxime Thiercy and Romain Di Giantommaso, who defeated Norway’s Hendrik Mol and Christian Sorum 2-0, earning their nation its first medal in the 13-year history of the U-21 World Championships.
Canada’s Sophie Bukovec and Tia Miric won the women’s title, beating Lithuania over three sets to win the gold medal in what was their first ever final.
“We had our ups and downs this season but us staying together is what made us come through the adversity and that’s why we ended up with the gold medal,” said a delighted Bukovec after the match.
“They are a tough team – they play hard and they fight for everything. I have to give them that but after the second set we just had to come out and win it. There is nothing to lose here, the environment is beautiful. We just had fun with each other and that is what got us the gold medal.”
Lithuania’s Ieva Dumbauskaite and Monika Povilaityte were victors in the Under-19 edition in Larnaca two years ago but a spirited display from the Canadians prevented them from consecutive gold on Cypriot soil.
Meanwhile, USA’s Kelly Claes and Sara Hughes won their second FIVB bronze medal by beating Nina Betschart and Nicole Eiholzer from Switzerland, adding to their third-place finish at the U-19 World Championships in Portugal last year.
Cyprus Mail
