Mix of youth and experience helps Portuguese teams cultivate high ambitions for World Tour event on home soil
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The debut in international competitions for the High Performance Beach Volleyball Centre (CARVP) located in Cortegaça (Ovar) and run by the Portuguese Volleyball Federation may bring good surprises to the host country. The fans have high expectations from the Portuguese teams that will participate from 12 to 15 August in the Beach Volleyball World Tour 1-star event in Cortegaça.
Roberto Reis and Sebastião Alves became national champions – Roberto (41 years old) for the 9th time and Sebastião (29) for the first time – last weekend at CARVP. This result sounds like a good omen for the first international participation of the newly formed team:
“This title motivates us even more for the World Tour event because it is always good to be winning and playing well, especially because this was the first competition we played together. Congratulations to our opponents for the way they fought. Pedrosa/Campos are growing steadily and their team has represented us very well in international competitions. Congratulations also to the Portuguese Volleyball Federation for the conditions it is providing to them.”
João Pedrosa and Hugo Campos, aged 21 and 20 respectively, were once again national runners-up and, despite their youth, their work at CARVP has allowed them to reap some
important results. Earlier this year, they finished second and third at two 1-Star events held in Sofia (Bulgaria) and ninth at the #EuroBeachVolleyU22 in Baden, Austria. Although they have not yet become national champions, the young team supported by the Portuguese Volleyball Federation to play the game all year round has
“a positive balance so far, as we know that we are working well and walking in the right direction. Our goal is to continue to work and try to give the maximum in every match and that is what we can promise ahead of the Beach Volleyball World Tour 1-Star event here in Cortegaça.”
At 36 years of age, many regard Juliana Antunes as the most successful Portuguese Beach Volleyball athlete of the past decade. Shortly after becoming national champion for the 10th time, and for the fifth time alongside Tânia Oliveira, “Ju” prepares to represent Portugal in the Beach Volleyball World Tour 1-Star event in Cortegaça.
Juliana and Tânia are very experienced athletes and, as such, with their feet firmly on the ground, but they cannot hide their desire to achieve a good result in international competition as well.
“We are going to give our best because we think that we have the quality to put up a fight against the teams registered in this event. As a team, we have never had the opportunity to compete in events of the World Tour abroad. We only participated in the 4-Star event held in Espinho two years ago. It was an enriching experience but it also left the feeling that we could do a little more,”
they acknowledge. “A tournament of this level is a very good moment for us to test ourselves as athletes and as a team. To the Portuguese fans, we can say that you can expect our best because we are going to give everything on the court!”
The Beach Volleyball World Tour 1-Star event in Cortegaça matches will be broadcast on Volei TV, and the finals will be available live on the A Bola TV channel as well.
You can find all information about the Beach Volleyball World Tour 1-Star event in Cortegaça at fpvoleibol.pt/cortegaca2021 as well as here.