A step from the semifinals: three Belarusian couples reached the playoffs of the “Victory Cup” on beach volleyball

Three Belarusian couples reached the quarterfinals of the international beach volleyball tournament “Victory Cup” at the capital’s Sports Palace. For a ticket to the semifinals and the opportunity to compete for medals, athletes will continue to fight already in relegation matches, the correspondent of the Minsk-Novosti agency reports.

Perhaps the most intense match on the first competitive day (September 9) with the participation of Belarusians was the meeting of Pavel Petrushko and Alexander Dedkov with Moscow pair Arseniy Krasavin and Vladislav Mikhalev (Dynamo-VS). Belarusian athletes lost in the second game, but managed to gather in the decisive set and snatched the victory. The final score is 2: 1 (21:18, 21:23, 16:14).

On the second day (September 10), our compatriots no longer gave their rivals a chance for a long fight. The Belarusian pair in two games beat the Russians Peter Bakhnar and German Alexandrov – 2: 0 (21:19, 21:15) and secured a place in the quarterfinals. In the next match, our two will face Nikita Lemin and Alexei Gusev from Dynamo-LO.

Representatives of the second composition of the Belarusian team - Ivan Yarmosh and Alexei Kovalevsky - fought with experienced rivals Ilya Leshukov and Oleg Stoyanovsky from Torchel Yamal, the leaders of the Russian championship. The competitors confidently controlled the course of the game and finished it in two games - 2: 0 (21:9, 21:8) in favor of the Russian pair.

The next opponents of the Belarusian duo on the second day of the competition were to be representatives of St. Petersburg - Ivan Chuprinov and Alexander Rukhmanov. However, unfortunately, our guys were forced to finish the performance early for medical reasons.

In the women’s grid, Belarus is represented by two pairs. Nadezhda Tishkova and Victoria Secretova confidently started at the tournament, beating Julia Sivolap and Anastasia Isakova from the St. Petersburg club “White Nights”.

The Belarusians seized the initiative from the first minutes and did not allow the rivals to transfer the meeting to the decisive third party. The final score is 2: 0 (21:15, 21:14).

On the second day of the competition, our athletes met with a St. Petersburg couple composed of Ulyana Kalachova and Veronika Pavlutskaya. The Belarusians again proved stronger, winning in two games - 21:18, 22:20 - and continued to fight for prizes. Now they will meet in the quarterfinals with the Russian duo Victoria Yamaletdinova and Daria Shustova.

The first day was saturated for another Belarusian women’s two – Veronika Thunder and Margarita Gaishun. Athletes had to hold two meetings at once. In the opening match, the athletes in a stubborn struggle beat sisters Ekaterina and Anastasia Garmash from Saratov. After the defeat at the beginning of the game, the Belarusians were able to turn the tide of the meeting and won 2:1 (14:21, 21:14, 15:12). In the second match, the rivals were stronger. The Belarusian tandem met with the current champions of the Victory Cup and the leaders of the Russian rating Maria Egorova and Maria Lazurenko. This time the struggle ended in two games - 0:2 (17:21, 11:21). Despite the defeat, V. Thunder and M. Gaishun will continue their performance at the tournament. In the quarterfinals, they will meet with Russians Kristina Filimonova and Ekaterina Shevtsova from Dynamo M.

Thus, after the group stage in the fight for awards, three Belarusian compositions remain - P. Petrushko and A. Dedkov, N. Tishkov and V. Secretov, V. Grom and M. Gaishun. The quarterfinals will be held on September 11 at the venue at the Sports Palace. Now the right to make a mistake from the participants will almost not remain: one match separates the athletes from the semi-finals and the fight for the medals of the “Victory Cup”.

Photo by Denis Kulagi, NOC and Ministry of Sport