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Beach action heating up in Moscow
- Updated: May 27, 2016
Moscow, Russia, May 27, 2016 – Although it was only the first-round of elimination at the US$800,000 Moscow Grand Slam here Friday morning, the competition was intense with two pairs suffering setbacks in their bids to earn in their country’s second berth in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games while one tandem helped secure their spot for the Copacabana quadrennial.
Improving their Olympic ranking total at a FIVB World Tour Grand Slam event were Monika Brzostek and Kinga Kolosinska as the 11th-seeded Polish pair advanced to the second-round of elimination with a 2-0 (21-17, 21-17) win in 32 minutes over 28th-seeded qualifiers Lane Carico and Summer Ross of the United States.
Brzostek and Kolosinska, who posted their best-ever international finish at the mid-March Rio Grand Slam on Copacabana, will now play fourth-seeded Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst of Germany in a “Sweet 16” match with the winner advancing to Saturday’s quarter-finals. It will be the third FIVB World Tour meeting between the two teams with the Germans winning both previous matches, including a win at the end of February in Maceio, Brazil.
While Ludwig and Walkenhorst (6,060 points for their best 12 finishes) are the top-team on the Rio 2016 Olympic qualifying list, excluding Brazilians, Brzostek and Kolosinska moved up three spots to No. 8 ahead of pairs from Spain, Canada and Switzerland with 4,680 points.
“Yesterday when we saw the draw, we knew we had a chance to win,” said the 25-year old Kolosinska. “So we grabbed that chance and won. And we are really, really happy. We want to show our best here, at the Euro championships next week and also in Hamburg. So we are not focusing on the Olympics, we just try to earn more points and gain self-confidence.”
For the 26-year old Brzostek, it was about the Olympics. “We heard from our coaches that this win clinched a spot for us in the Olympics as the first Polish women’s team. I cannot believe it. We will wait till Hamburg to be really, really sure.”
Also celebrating a Friday morning win …
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