Latvia and the Netherlands clinch Nations Cup Finals berths in Netanya
News
Latvian women and Dutch men will compete in the 2023 CEV Beach Volleyball Nations Cup Finals after their teams had a successful couple of days in Netanya, Israel, this weekend, winning their Preliminary Phase pools.
Latvia had arguably the best team in the women’s Pool G in Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova and the reigning European champions ended up making a difference as their country prevailed over Bulgaria, Finland and hosts Israel at the Wingate Institute Beach Center.
The Latvians overcame each of their opponents between Friday and Saturday and on two occasions it was up to Tina and Anastasija, who made it to the semifinals of the Tokyo Olympics two years ago, to win the deciding golden set.
That was the case in the final duel of the event, when Latvia topped Finland. The European champions entered the court with their country down 1-0 after compatriots Deniela Konstantinova and Līva Ēbere fell to Anniina Parkkinen and Sara Sinisalo in two sets (21-19, 21-17), but stepped up to defeat Taru Lahti-Liukkonen and Niina Ahtiainen 2-0 (21-17, 21-9) in the second match of the series and 15-8 in the golden set to secure the Latvian triumph.
Anastasija Samoilova“It’s a pity the Israeli team got injured and couldn’t play in the semifinals earlier today. Overall it was a very good result for us and we’re looking forward to playing in the Nations Cup Finals.”
Latvian Beach Volleyball Player
Latvia are the fourth women’s team confirmed in the 2023 Nations Cup Finals, joining the Netherlands, Poland and France. The other three pool winners will also qualify and will join the host country of the event.
Latvia also made it to the final of the men’s Pool B in Netanya, but couldn’t handle the strong Dutch team, who came out on top in the deciding series and qualified for the Finals, joining Switzerland, Austria and Sweden.
Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medallists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen won three of their four matches over the weekend, recovering from their only setback to win the golden set in the semifinals against Israel – Romania and Scotland also took part in the men’s event in Netanya.
In the final, the Dutch team was dominant, with Brouwer and Meeuwsen defeating Martins Plavins and Mihails Samoilovs in straight sets (21-16, 21-15) and the country’s new team of Steven van de Velde and Matthew Immers overcoming Edgars Tocs and Olivers Bulgacs in the tie-breaker (21-16, 17-21, 18-16).
Created in 2022, the Nations Cup brings added weight in 2023 and 2024, serving as the European pathway in the qualification system for the beach volleyball tournament of the Paris 2024 Olympics – the countries that win the 2024 Finals among the men and the women will each earn a spot in the Games.
The event has a different competition format, promoting ‘country vs. country’ battles. Each nation is represented by two teams and the duels take place in a best-of-three format, with the decider, if needed, being a 15-point golden set.