#BeachNationsCup gold between Italy and Norway
News
Italy and Norway won the last six editions of the CEV EuroBeachVolley and it will also be one of these nations to step at the top of the podium in the inaugural A1 CEV BeachVolley Nations Cup when the tournament comes to an end in Vienna on Sunday.
The final encounter between Italians and Norwegians at the Red Bull Beach Arena is set to start at 16.30 local time, following the bronze medal match between Austria and the Netherlands, which will begin at 13.00.
The gold medal match series will kick off with Italians Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi facing Norwegians Hendrik Mol and Mathias Berntsen and will continue with the duel between Paolo Nicolai/Samuele Cottafava and Anders Mol/Christian Sørum. The two nations met on Thursday, in pool play, and the Italians won both matches of the series.
On Saturday, the Italians were also undefeated in their semifinal series against Austria, coming out on top in both duels in three sets. In the first one, Carambula and Rossi downed Martin Ermacora and Moritz Pristauz while in the second one Nicolai and Cottafava topped Robin Seidl and Philipp Waller.
Paolo Nicolai“It was a great match, but what really stood out for me was the atmosphere. It's different for all of us when we play here in Vienna. The energy that the fans give us is amazing and we want to play every match in an environment like this. It's for sure a battle on the court, but the most important thing is to enjoy it and that's what we did.”
Italian Beach Volleyball Player
Reigning Olympic, world and #EuroBeachVolley champions Mol and Sørum once again showed their strength by playing a key role in Norway’s dramatic semifinal victory against the Netherlands and carrying their country to the gold medal match.
After Hendrik and Mathias lost their opening match to Christiaan Varenhorst and Steve van de Velde, the Beach Volley Vikings had no option but to defeat 2013 world champions and Rio 2016 Olympic medalists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen twice. And that’s exactly what they did, pulling off a three-set victory in their match and following it up with a 17-15 golden set triumph at the Red Bull Beach Arena.
Anders Mol“It was a great match against the Dutch, like always. We’ve played so many tight matches against them over the years and there’s a big rivalry between our teams and theirs. It’s really nice to get the win today and place Norway into the final. We’re really happy to do it with Mathias and Hendrik.”
Norwegian Beach Volleyball Player
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