"There is a great potential for Beach Volleyball in Turkey" says US mentor Troy Tanner
Alanya, Turkey, September 24, 2010. The Turkish Volleyball Federation has been implementing a solid project - for the past couple of years – to accelerate the development of Beach Volleyball in the country. In this attempt US American Troy Tanner plays the role of Project Advisor, working closely with Turkish coaches and the guys and girls included in the national team. Mr. Tanner is also attending the European Continental Beach Volleyball Cup tournament being currently played in Alanya and discussed about the outcome of these seasons and the future steps of the project.
What is the plan to develop Beach Volleyball in Turkey?
We have big plans for the national team to make them stronger. We have very wide and beautiful beaches to improve this sport in Turkey.
Are you happy with this year’s performance of your teams?
Coaches always want more from their teams, but this year I am glad of my teams’ performance. I am happy now.
What is the real potential of your teams?
One of our male duos performed very well in some FIVB and CEV tournaments. I can see the power for the future. They have the ability to achieve higher results in the near future. The girls will be more competitive only in a few years.
What do you think of this competition?
I like this tournament. It is a good opportunity for us to get more experience.
Montpellier gradually turning into France's Beach Volleyball "Mecca"
Montpellier, France, September 24, 2010. The Sub Zonal Phase tournament – Pool D on schedule for the European Beach Volleyball Continental Cup is almost ready to go in Montpellier, France. The local organizers have been closely working together with CEV Supervisor Tosho Stoyanov of Bulgaria to make sure that this event will be a major success.
The weather was not that great on Thursday with some rain and the general strike taking place in France did also cause some disruptions on the arrival of the officials, so that the Serbian delegation is likely to resume to Montpellier only on Friday. Israel will also show up this afternoon to complete the starting field of the tournament.
Mr. Jean-Pierre Begu, President of the local Organizing Committee, can hardly wait for the start of the competition: “I am definitely longing for the first matches. Even though we had to cope with some troubles and we were forced to rush a little bit, I think we are basically ready to host a great event. We are really pleased to welcome our friends from Serbia, The Netherlands, Liechtenstein and Israel and we hope that it will be a great and successful competition”.
The Dutch delegation did arrive already on Wednesday and is preparing very professionally for the tournament. They had a couple of training sessions per day and did display some great skills. There ambitions are clear: the first place in this Pool is the only option.
The French teams are also in Montpellier since Tuesday and the guys are working hard to perform at their best in front of their home fans. Fabien Dugrip is at home in Montpellier and after a long summer on the World Tour he is very keen on winning this event: “This Continental Cup is a good opportunity for us and is a very important step to qualify for the 2012 Olympics in London. Having the opportunity to play at that high level in Montpellier, in my club, against top players of the international circuit is really fabulous and I can not wait for the event to start”.
To have this event here in the venue of the Montpellier Beach Volleyball Club is also a great achievement for the guy who created this club 6 years ago. With the help of Michel Laget, Athens Olympians Mathieu Hamel and Stéphane Canet can be proud of their achievements. Starting from nothing in 2005 and with the support of the Municipality they have created a fabulous venue with 4 outdoor and 2 indoor courts. The club has more than 250 members playing only Beach Volleyball and is recognized by all as the leading structure for Beach Volleyball in France. “For us it’s a nice reward for all the hard work. Times are still not easy as we do not always receive the support we expect, however to be able to organize such an event is making us very happy and is a nice achievement. Together with our partners we want to create one of best centers for Beach Volley Ball worldwide. The road is still long but I am sure we will succeed as we truly love this sport”.
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Turkish men advance to final clash in Alanya
Alanya, Turkey, September 24, 2010. The guys of Turkey enjoyed a great start in the Sub Zonal Phase tournament being currently played in Alanya for the European Continental Beach Volleyball Cup as they needed only 3 matches to claim the semifinal clash against Slovakia and qualify to the final against Austria which is on schedule for Saturday, September 25.
The first competition day in Alanya did include also the first set of matches for the women’s semifinals with Austria having scored two wins against host Turkey whereas Finland and Slovakia shared victories this afternoon for the provisional 1:1. The semis will come to a close tomorrow whereas the final “Country vs. Country” and the classification match will be played on Sunday
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Rhodes, Greece, September 18, 2010. Greece and Estonia split
the top positions in the Sub Zonal Phase - Pool G of the European
Continental Beach Volleyball Cup in Rhodes. While Greece’s top team and
strong favorites of the women’s tournament, Maria Tsiartsiani/Vassiliki
Arvaniti, struggled to gain two victories over Estonia, it was Joanna
Papageorgiou/Christina Roubanis who shut out Kristel Kiens/Kertti Kulm
2-0 (21-16, 21-17) to finish the series 3-1.
Both Greece and Estonia qualify to the next phase of the Continental
Cup, as does Cyprus, which had defeated Romania with a ‘golden set’
victory on Friday. The European Continental Cup will give one berth per
gender for the 2012 London Olympics, plus an additional chance to
qualify to the Olympics through the World Cup.
“It was nice to finish at the top of the Pool before the home crowd in
Rhodes,” said Arvaniti after the gold medal had been secured. “We are
still not playing 100 percent, but tournaments such as this are a great
chance for us to improve.” Tsiartsiani added: “It’s nice to see that
Joanna and Christina [Greece’s second team in Rhodes] stood up to
expectations and did exactly what they needed to do in scoring the
deciding victory that earned us first place.”
In the men’s competition in Rhodes, the final was a walkover for
Estonia, which outclassed Greece three times and comfortably earned the
gold medal. Karl Jaani/Rivo Vesik scored two of the Estonian victories,
with Kaarel Kais/Kristjan Kais adding a third to send the Baltic team to
the top position on the podium.
Regardless of the result, both Estonia and Greece qualify to the next
phase of the competition in 2011 and stay on track on their quest for an
Olympic berth in London 2012.
“It was a lovely event,” said Vesik at the conclusion of the tournament.
“I think we deserved the first place, as we fielded the best two teams
although Greece proved very competitive.” Jaani, meanwhile, concentrated
on his country’s Olympic vision: “We are currently ranked 31st in the
world, so it is important for us to continue to believe in an Olympic
qualification.”
The two Romanian and two Cypriot teams split victories, with one each,
and forced the series to a ‘golden set’, where Moisa Abrudan/Marius
Maskovits inched past Misha Kushnerev/Jimmy Apostolou 15-12, to earn the
bronze medal and a berth in the next phase of the Continental Cup.
“With the two top teams of the tournament beyond our reach, the third
place in this tournament should leave us satisfied,” said Abrudan after
the deciding ‘golden set’. “Our Olympic dream is still alive,” added his
teammate as he rejoiced for the unique victory over Cyprus.
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Picture: Mari-Liis Graumann of Estonia hits the ball past Greece’s Joanna Papageorgiou as referee Nina Hobi of Austria looks closely
Turkey wins men’s tournament in Alanya
Alanya, Turkey, September 25, 2010. The Turkish duos turned to be a tough opponent for the Austrian team in today’s men’s final of the Sub Zonal phase tournament – Pool H held in Alanya for the European Beach Volleyball Continental Cup. After two games decided at the tie-break in the morning session, Turkey scored two straight wins to clinch the tournament with an overall 3-1 score.
Turkey’s “captain” Selcuk Sekerci stated that all Turkish athletes are delighted with their performance and their results in this tournament and very happy to win the event on home soil. He also expressed his ambition to continue their efforts to achieve higher ranks in Beach Volleyball events and even the Olympic qualification.
The coordinator of the Turkish Volleyball Federation Beach Volleyball Department Mr. Erkal Tas stated he was happy for achieving the first major achievement of Turkish Beach Volleyball in international competitions “despite the short period since we started our new development plan. This result increases the enthusiasm for the future”.
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