Ayr hosts Belgium, Czechia, Poland and Scotland for Nations Cup Pool F
News
Belgium, Czechia, Poland and Scotland will be the next countries to compete for a spot in the 2023 CEV Beach Volleyball Nations Cup Finals as their women’s teams are set to battle in the Pool F of the Preliminary Phase this weekend.
Between Saturday and Sunday, the countries’ national teams will be in action at the Kyle Academy, in Ayr, Scotland, with the winners booking their tickets to the Nations Cup Finals, which will be played later this year.
Created in 2022, the event brings added weight in 2023 and 2024, serving as the European pathway in the qualification system for the beach volleyball tournament of the Paris 2024 Olympics – the countries that win the 2024 Finals among the men and the women will each earn a spot in the Games. The seven pool winners and the host country will play in this year's Finals.
Czechia have the most experienced squad among the four participants with two Olympians featuring in their two teams. Markéta Sluková and Barbora Hermannová, who were partners between 2015 and 2021, have five Olympic appearances among them and bring a wealth of experience to their new partners, Helena Havelkova and Marie-Sara Stochlova.
The Beach Nations Cup Pool F will be just the fifth tournament for Sluková and Havelkova, who just became partners in November, while Hermannová and Stochlova have been together since 2021, having won two medals on Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour events.
Poland stand out as the main competitors for the Czechs this week as the country also brings two teams that regularly compete at the international level in Jagoda Gruszczyńska/Aleksandra Wachowicz and Katarzyna Kociołek/Marta Łodej.
Andrea Raffaelli“We prepared very well for this event because it’s really important for us. We want to play well in Ayr and we think we have a chance to win there. We expect to be able to play our best game. We have two good teams and will do our best.”
Poland Head Coach
Hosts Scotland will have former player Melissa Coutts, who was active as recently as last year at the age of 51, as the team’s head coach. Her former partner Lynne Beattie, a London 2012 volleyball Olympian, will be paired with Mhairi Agnew while Rachel Morrison and Kathryn Barbour form the second Scottish duo in the event.
Belgium will be represented in Ayr by the pairs of Inès Piret/Annelore Bex and Lisa van der Vonder/Louka Maertens.
The winners of the event in Ayr will join Pool C winners the Netherlands in the 2023 Nations Cup Finals. The field for the tournament will also include the host country and the five other pool winners.
The Nations Cup has a different competition format, promoting ‘country vs. country’ battles. Each nation is represented by two teams and the duels take place in a best-of-three format, with the decider, if needed, being a 15-point golden set.
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