The 2015 edition of the CEV Beach Volleyball European Championship Final was one of a kind. As many as 87,000 fans flocked to the venue set up on the shores of the Wörthersee to enjoy the best Beach Volleyball party of the year!

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Klagenfurt further cemented its position as the world’s Beach Volleyball ‘Mecca’ with 9 courts ideally set up for Europe’s elite of this sport which hosted as many as 144 exciting matches throughout the six days of competition. 32 teams per gender for a total of 128 players delivered a real show, on and off the sand, with the actions being broadcast by as many as 20 TV stations thereby reaching out to a truly global audience including China, USA, Canada and many more countries!

Latvia’s Beach Volleyball icons Aleksandrs Samoilovs/Janis Smedins completed their chase for gold when on Sunday they beat Italy’s sensation Alex Ranghieri/Adrian Carambula in a final match that was a demonstration of Beach Volleyball at its finest. Reinder Nummerdor equalled the record of Germany’s legend Jonas Reckermann winning his sixth European medal to follow up on the silver he and partner Christiaan Varenhorst had claimed at the World Championships only a few weeks ago.

Lion king Aleksandrs Samoilovs and his team mate Janis Smedins are the new European beach volleyball champions Photocredit: CEV/eventoLive

Germany’s Laura Ludwig cemented her status as Europe’s most decorated Beach Volleyball player since the introduction of the continental premier competition back in 1994 with her eighth medal overall and third gold, thereby equalling the record of Italy’s Annamaria Solazzi/Laura Bruschini and Greece’s Vassou Karadassiou who are the only other triple European champions in history.  

Beach volleyball pro athletes Laura Ludwig (with partner Kira Walkenhorst) is now triple European champion Photocredit: CEV/eventoLive

There was also an emotional moment on Saturday when shortly before the women’s bronze medal match international referee Jonas Personeni proposed to his long-time girlfriend and colleague Nina Hobi delivering some extra content that went just viral on social media (click here for a short video).

“We knew that our European Championship was placed in good hands with Klagenfurt hosting this competition for the second time,” CEV President André Meyer says, “but the organisers did not only live up to our expectations but they went even beyond that. What really amazes me is the crowd that always comes together there in Klagenfurt to cheer the players on. They do not mind about the weather, they are truly passionate about Beach Volleyball and want to be a part of the show that unfolds once a year there on the shores of the Wörthersee. We now look forward to next year’s Championship in Biel/Bienne and are confident that the organisers in Switzerland will also be up to the task for a competition that will be even more exciting as it takes place right by the time that teams are fighting hard for their qualification to the 2016 Rio Olympics.”

Click here for a comprehensive live gallery of the tournament

Click here for further information including a detailed results, final standings and much more