2016-03-16 14:04:00 CEST
It’s time to weed out the winners from the losers.
Brouwer/Meeuwsen at Poreč Major also compete at Vitoria Open Photo Credit: Andreas Langreiter
After a grueling day of qualifications, the competition is not over at the Vitória Open as teams ready themselves for a full day of matches as pool games begin.
Fair Game for any team determined enough…
The Vitória Open is the third consecutive FIVB World Tour beach volleyball calendar event to be held in Brazil this year. First was the Maceio Open where Eduarda “Duda” Lisboa and Elize Maia took gold; followed by the highly publicized Rio Grand Slam where Polish duo Losiak/Kantor triumphed and now finally the Vitória Open which is fair game for any team determined enough.
After the Fortaleza Open scheduled end April, Brazil takes a nice three month break to prepare for the massive and prestigious sporting event – the Summer Olympics 2016 which is set to be held in Rio at the renowned Copacabana Beach.
Vitória Open commences Pool matches today with some interesting groupings; ladies Pool B can expect to see world-class beach volleyball as Austrian wildcard winners: Schützenhöfer/Plesiutschnig go up against Rio Grand Slam winners Ross/Walsh – also in the same group is Duda/Elize Maia who will be more determined than ever after the Maceio Open winners were eliminated from the money rounds at the Rio Grand Slam.
On our men’s watchlist include Dutch power team: Brouwer/Meeuwsen who successfully eliminated current FIVB World champions Alison/Bruno Schmidt from the Rio Grand Slam quarterfinals and then went on to secure 3rd place.
But be sure to keep your eyes on the current world champions as well, as they (Alison/Bruno Schmidt) have already secured a spot at the summer Olympics representing Brazil. The pressure is on for the boys to show the world how the sport should be played when it’s played by champions.
Not forgetting our newly reconciled team Ricardo Alex Costa Santos and Álvaro Morais Filho who are competing in their first tournament together in two years – have they still got what it takes? Can they pull it together in time to win a tournament?
We have to wait and see. Fingers Crossed.