International beach volleyball history was made in the final gold medal matches held Monday June 14, 2010 in Moscow as both the Chinese men’s and women’s pairs won gold medals for the first time in the SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour.
China’s men and women pairs beat out strong international volleyball competition, including facing top-seeded U.S. teams for the final FIVB gold matches. The FIVB $600,000 (USD) Grand Slam presented by SEAT featured a 24-team elimination bracket competition at the SWATCH FIVB World Tour stop on the Poklonnaya Gora (Victory Park) courts in Moscow June 10-14, 2010.
China’s Wu and Xu Win Men’s Gold Medal in International Beach Volleyball
As the 13th-seeded team of the SWATCH FIVB World Tour in Moscow, Penggen Wu and Linyin Xu surpassed expectations by winning their first-ever gold medal match omn the international beach volleyball circuit.
Wu and Xu defeated top-seeded Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers of the United States by scoring 21-17, 17-21 amd 17-15 in only 57 minutes of finals play. Wu and Xu had previously lost to Dalhausser and Rogers at the 2008 final match in Moscow, the last match between the two teams at the SWATCH FIVB World Tour.
According to China’s Wu, the gold medal win was based on “a lot of luck”. As the reigning Olympic Champions, Dalhausser and Rogers already held three SWATCH World Tour wins and a recent tournament win at the AVP Pro Beach Tour Huntington Beach event in the U.S. one week prior to the Moscow event.
The results of the semi-finals brackets leading up to the final match were:
- Wu and Xu defeated Casey Jennings and Brad Keenan of the United States (21-12 and 21-16)
- Dalhausser and Rogers defeated Julius Brink and Jonas Reckermann of Germany (21-15 and 21-15)
China’s Women Win Gold Medal at SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour
Just two days prior to the men’s Chinese team winning the gold medal, the women’s Chinese team of Chen Xue and Xi Zhang also took the gold at the SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour.
The eighth-seeded team Xue and Zhang defeated the second-seeded team of Jennifer Kessey and April Ross of the United States, winning the $600,000 (USD) Grand Slam presented by SEAT. China’s team won for the second time in three years against one of the U.S. women’s teams. Both match wins were held in Moscow.
The results of the semi-finals brackets leading up to the final match were:
- Chen Xue and Xi Zhang defeated Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca of Brazil (12-21, 21-14 and 15-13)
- Jennifer Kessey and April Ross defeated Maria Antonelli and Talita Antunes of Brazil (18-21, 21-18 and 15-13)
SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour 2010 Schedule
The International Federation of Volleyball (FIVB) consists of 220 affiliated Federations and governs, manages and promotes all forms of Volleyball and Beach Volleyball worldwide through tournaments such as the SWATCH FIVB World Tour.
The 2010 SWATCH FIVB World Tour schedule continues with upcoming matches for both men and women. The women’s international beach volleyball competition takes a two week hiatus after the Grand Slam presented by SEAT and will resume in Norway for the $600,000 ConocoPhillips Grand Slam in Stavanger. Men’s international beach volleyball competitions will be held June 15-20 in Prague.
Source: FIVB.org
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