Qatar Volleyball Association president Khalid Ali Abdullah al-Mawlawi and secretary general Mohammed Ali al-Mohannadi present the winners’ cheque to Germany’s Lars Fluggen and Markus Bockermann after they won the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Qatar Open gold yesterday. PICTURES: Jayaram
By Sports Reporter/Doha
Lars Fluggen and Markus Bockermann ended a long season in the best way possible by winning their second FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour gold of the year, at the Qatar Open yesterday.
The German pair defeated Nick Lucena and Phil Dalhausser 2-1 (21-18, 16-21, 15-13) to secure their first victory in three attempts against the American pair this year.
In doing so, they succeed Tim Holler and Jonas Schroder on top of the podium, after their compatriots won the inaugural event in 2014.
“It was very, very tough,” Fluggen said. “I think these two guys are the best team in the world right now. They won three out of five of the last tournaments and it just feels awesome to beat them.”
Fluggen and Bockermann have truly made their mark on the World Tour in 2015. They won their first World Tour medals together by winning gold at the Fuzhou Open and then won silvers at the Rio de Janeiro and Xiamen Opens.
Gold in Doha means that they have now book-ended the year on top of World Tour podiums.
“This year is the first time we’ve reached a semifinal and that experience was important,” Bockermann said. “We’ve learned to get it right and we need to keep it going.”
Bronze for Hyden and Bourne
John Hyden and Tri Bourne ended their long wait for a return to the World Tour podium when they defeated Edouard Rowlandson and Youssef Krou in the bronze medal match.
The American pair ensured that there would be two US teams on the podium by beating the French duo (21-15, 20-22, 15-12). The bronze is their first World Tour medal since they claimed gold at the 2014 Berlin Grand Slam.
“I thought it was one of our best performances of the year,” Hyden said. “It was really fun and both teams were making great plays and I’m just glad we came out on top.”
The FIVB Qatar Open is last of three open events on the 2015 portion of the 2016 FIVB World Tour calendar and started on Monday at the Qatar Beach Volleyball Academy in the Al Gharafa Sports Club in Doha. It concluded yesterday when the semifinals and medal matches took place.
