2019-06-14 01:00:00 CEST
Beach community mourns loss of American beach volleyball player Eric Zaun
The Beach Volleyball Major Series would like to pay its respects to American beach volleyball player Eric Zaun following the sad news of the 25-year-old’s sudden passing.
Although Eric did not make an appearance on the Beach Major Series, the 6ft 3in was a hugely popular player on the American AVP circuit and was named their Rookie of the Year in 2017.
Eric was a regular on the National Volleyball League between 2013 and 2006 before making the transition to AVP and, in 2018, he made his FIVB World Tour debut with Stafford Slick in Quizhou, finishing 17th.
His final FIVB appearance came with Jeremy Casebeer in The Hague in January this year, and only as recently as last week did Eric feature on the AVP Tour, where he and Avery Drost gave Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb a battle in New York.
In the last 12 months Eric would also represent the United States in snow volleyball and competed in the King of the Court tournament in Huntington Beach.
A number of the beach elite, especially those in the USA, have paid tribute to Zaun, including Casey Patterson, Phil Dalhausser and former partner Ed Ratledge, who said on Instagram of Eric "He completely changed my life. And if you knew him, I'd bet he changed yours."
Everyone at the Beach Major Series would like to extend their deepest sympathies to Eric's family and friends at this sad time.
Rest in Peace, Eric.