Alexander Brouwer’s enjoys ‘homecoming’ in Stare Jablonki

If someone has ‘sweet memories’ of Stare Jablonki, where the CEV EuroBeachVolley 2026 got underway on Wednesday, that is certainly Dutchman Alexander Brouwer. Thirteen years ago, together with former partner Robert Meeuwsen, who retired in the late summer of 2024, they sensationally claimed the FIVB World Championship title – thus becoming only the second European team to achieve this feat.  

Brouwer competes in Stare Jablonki with current partner Stefan Boermans. Boermans was just 18 years old in 2013 and a shoe salesman when Brouwer became world champion. Stare Jablonki, an idyllic small village a two-hour drive from Gdansk and Warsaw, has welcomed the European Beach Volleyball elite for a continental championship that for the first time counts as an Olympic qualifier as well.

Sharing memories from 2013, Brouwer says: “I arrived here as a rookie. It was the first World Championship we played together. We had consistently finished ninth in the tournaments before that, and to achieve A-status with the National Olympic Committee, we needed a spot in the top eight. That is what we were hoping for.” 

After cancelling a match point for their opposition, Brouwer and Meeuwsen finished third in the pool and thus advanced to the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams. While the two were chilling in the hotel bowling alley together with then superstars Reinder Nummerdor and Richard Schuil, the news of the draw reached all four of them. “We had to play against each other. That moment was, of course, a bit strange at the time,” Brouwer recounts. The result of that match speaks for itself. The Dutch pair subsequently defeated the Austrians Clemens Doppler/Alexander Horst. This was followed by a victory over the Brazilians Pedro and Bruno. Pointing to what is Court 1 this week but was Court 2 back then, Alex says: “I remember very well that on match point, Bruno hit the ball just past my arm and just out. If he had hit the ball a few centimetres further in, it would have been over for us.” At the end of that day, Brouwer was sitting in the hotel wellness area with the Brazilian Alvaro Morais Filho in the jacuzzi. They eventually ended up playing against each other in the gold medal match. 

At the EuroBeachVolley venue, large black-and-white photos of the 2013 final still hang on the outer wall of a barn. They bring a big smile to his face. “Yeah, that is pretty nice, isn’t it?” As he climbs the stands of the current stadium, he recalls another anecdote. “During the semi-final, Bert Goedkoop, the technical director at the time, was already crying. That’s how beautiful he thought the performance was. I remember Gijs Ronnes, our coach, sending him away. He did not want us to be distracted by those emotions.” 

After the final, all inhibitions were cast aside. “We had heard stories all week about the wild parties on the grounds, but we were in a tunnel and wanted to maintain that focus. But when we finally wanted to grab a beer after the final and the award ceremony, the bar had already been taken down.” Brouwer, who also visited the hotel pool every day as a kind of ritual and superstition, did still dive into the nearby lake together with Meeuwsen. 

Alex, who is now competing at EuroBeachVolley for the 16th time, is often asked if this was the highlight of his career: 

Brouwer’s journey in Stare Jablonki started very well with a commanding 2-0 victory (21-18, 21-15) over Poland’s home heroes Igor Ciemachowski and Kacper Taudul, winners of a domestic EuroBeachVolley 2026 qualifying event contested here in July. Let’s see if Alex can write another chapter of Beach Volleyball history in a place that holds such a special place in his heart…