Vienna, Austria. The HYPO NOE Beach Volleyball Champions Cup featuring the top Austrian teams ended on Saturday with a great final tournament. Nadine Strauss/Teresa Strauss and Robin Seidl/Philipp Waller (pictured) triumphed on the spusuSPORTinsel in Vienna, securing the crown after a two-week invitational event held across four cities. Even the chilly weather did not affect the excellent atmosphere on Vienna’s Danube Island, where from 10 am athletes and fans braved wind and rain, thus putting their stamp on the final day of the first competition held after the lockdown.
Semis set the tone for great Beach Volleyball party
The day started with the women’s semi-finals. Julia Radl/Anja Dörfler prevailed against Dorina Klinger and her interim Norwegian partner Oda Ulveseth 2-1 (21-17, 21-23, 15-9) to make it to the grand finale of the competition with an immaculate record. The second semi-final was an even more competitive affair: the top-seeded Nadine and Teresa Strauss eventually edged Franziska Friedl and Eva Pfeffer 2-1 (19-21, 21-19, 15-13).
Robin Seidl blocks Alexander Horst in the semis ?
In the men’s event, Christoph Dressler and Alexander Huber continued their successful run with a confident 2-0 (21-19, 21-14) victory over Tobias Winter and Julian Hörl. The expected highlight followed suit when Clemens Doppler/Alexander Horst played Robin Seidl/Philipp Waller. The first set belonged to the more seasoned players, but the course of the match changed swiftly. Seidl and Waller prevailed 2-1 (17-21, 21-14, 15-11) to celebrate their second victory over Doppler and Horst in the HYPO NOE Champions Cup. They had already prevailed at the preliminary round tournament in the MaXX Sports Centre Vienna. “It was actually a very good, balanced game in which our opponents ended up being a little bit better,” summed up Doppler. “They deservedly won,” said Horst and was enthusiastic about the atmosphere: “Sensational that so many people came, even though the weather is really bad!”
Bronze for Friedl/Pfeffer and Winter/Hörl
Friedl/Pfeffer had to fight hard to edge Klinger and Ulveseth 2-1 (21-15, 25-27, 15-12) in the women’s bronze medal match. “We are extremely satisfied and we were able to get really good results for two weeks. I think we are better than before the coronavirus crisis. Maybe the forced break was just good for us,” said Friedl happily. Tobias Winter and Julian Hörl beat Doppler and Horst 2-1 (21-16, 25-27, 15-10) in the men’s ‘small final’.
Nadine and Teresa Strauss celebrate their victory in Vienna
Strauss twins on a class of their own
Teresa and Nadine Strauss did everything right in the final duel with Radl/Dörfler. The 24-year-old twins took command early and with a comprehensive 2-0 (21-13, 21-13), they made amends for their loss in the intermediate round held last week in Graz. “We are delighted to have fulfilled our role as favourites. We were under pressure, but we coped well with the situation. In the final, everything worked out just fine for us, while Anja and Julia made some mistakes,” said Nadine Strauss. Twin sister Teresa added: “The rain did not bother us, we were relaxed and we were able to put pressure with the service. We are on a good way. It was announced yesterday that there will be a European Championship in September. We want to be there. The Olympic Games are also a big goal! ”
The joy about second place was greater than the anger about defeat for Radl and Dörfler. “We are super happy. Unfortunately, we did not get into the game in the final like we did in the games before. There were too many mistakes from our side,” explained Dörfler.
Seidl/Waller secure title without a single loss
At 12-12, the favourite duo Seidl and Waller managed a 4-0 run, which paved the way to a 21-16 win in the first set of the men’s final. Dressler and Huber changed pace in the second set, thus calling for a tiebreak. This was a close affair before Seidl and Waller broke away at 13-10 and thus gained the decisive advantage to finish it all off at 15-12.
For Dressler/Huber, it was the only loss at the HYPO NOE Champions Cup, while Seidl/Waller remained undefeated in their eight games. “We are incredibly happy! Is there anything nicer than winning a tournament staying undefeated?” said Seidl. Waller analysed, “We had a great side-out and were strong in defence.”
The losers were also satisfied. “It is difficult to say what was missing in the end. In the last set, they might have been a little better. But we are proud to be on the same level,” explained Huber, while Dressler said, “We are very grateful that the HYPO NOE Champions Cup could take place and are very happy about this medal!”
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Photo credit: HYPO NOE / Gert Nepel
