Germans chase to Copacabana ends in Hamburg

Hamburg, Germany, June 1, 2016 – Months on the road chasing their Olympic dream come down to one week to tell their story of 2016.  And for two German Beach Volleyball teams, their dreams will either be realized or dashed on their home soil.

But the US$800,000 Hamburg Major, the final event of the 2016 Rio Olympics cycle in which teams can accrue points for qualification, comes with a little bit of a twist.  The city chosen this time around is not regular FIVB World Tour stop Berlin, which just happens to be the hometowns of Ilke Semmler, Katrin Holtwick, Kay Matysik and Jonathan Erdmann.

No enthusiasm has been dampened, however.

“It’s always good to play in Germany,” Holtwick said.  “The last years were in Berlin, our real hometown, so it was maybe even more cool than Hamburg but a tournament in Germany is great.  In the last couple of years we’ve performed quite well in the German events.  Only in 2014 it was not that good.  In years before it was a good place to perform so we are looking forward to Hamburg.”

Holtwick is looking forward to see the reaction of the fans to players from around the world celebrating their Olympic dreams.

“I think that’s amazing,” Holtwick said.  “Everyone was waiting for such a moment and now it comes to the end in Hamburg.  It’s great for all of us.”

Of course, playing in front of family and friends can add distractions and a little extra pressure to the proceedings.  For the two German teams, they’ll trade that when weighed against the pressure they face in order to make the cut for the Olympics.

Erdmann and Matysik enter the week as the last team in on the men’s Provisional Olympic Rankings – and they are tied with compatriots Marcus Bockermann and Lars Fluggen.  Either of the teams could move up or be knocked out as the tournament unfolds.

“For sure I will be really, …

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