Barbara Seixas and Carol Salgado became the first team to win multiple gold medals on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour after the experienced Brazilians stepped on to the top of the podium at the Doha Challenge on Sunday.

After winning the Beach Pro Tour's inaugural event in Tlaxcala in March, the 34-year veterans were again victorious at the Al Gharafa Beach Courts in the Qatari capital and completely dominated their German rivals Chantal Laboureur and Sarah Schulz to a two-set (21-13, 21-13) victory in the gold medal match.

“It was really special to compete here in Doha this week,” Carol said after the gold medal match. “The level was so high all week and I'm so proud of our team because we played together the entire time. The Germans are an amazing team and played really well in the entire tournament. We’re really happy that we get to leave with the trophy, we wanted it so bad.”

· All the matches of the Doha Challenge are available to watch on Volleyball TV.

Barbara, a Rio 2016 Olympic silver medallist, and Carol, who first became partners in 2020, were highly successful in each of the three first Challenge events of the Beach Pro Tour, taking gold in Tlaxcala and Doha and finishing fifth in Itapema. The reigning Brazilian champions also have a 13th-place finish at the Rosarito Elite16 event in their record for the international season.

“We're very happy with our results,” Barbara told Volleyball World. “We've been working very hard with our coaching staff to improve as a team and I think that's showing on the court. This challenge of being better every day is truly motivating us and this tournament in Doha was excellent in that regard. We've been trying to approach every match with the right attitude. We're very happy with what we've accomplished, but we always want more."

The Brazilians were dominant in the final and only allowed the Germans to be ahead at the start of the match. The South Americans found their rhythm in the middle of the set with Carol dominating the net and Barbara playing flawlessly on the backcourt and quickly produced an 18-11 lead to never look back. An ace by Carol sealed their 21-13 first set victory.

The second set was even until 8-8, with both teams siding out well. Playing great blocking and defence, the Brazilians scored six points in a roll to lead 14-8 and placed themselves in a very comfortable position to win. The Germans fought back, but a well-placed roll shot by Barbara ended the set and the match at 21-13.

“I believe the key for us was improving our serves,” Barbara reflected. “Carol, especially, did a great job serving between the two of them and that created trouble. We remained aggressive the entire time, and brought positive energy to the court and I think that worked out. Now we go back to Brazil and prepare for the next events.”

Doha Challenge Results

Reigning European champions Nina Brunner and Tanja Huberli claimed their first Beach Pro Tour medal after the Swiss defeated Tokyo Olympic silver medallists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho of Australia 2-1 (13-21, 21-19, 15-11) in the bronze medal match in Doha.

Earlier, in the semifinals, Carol and Barbara dropped their only set in the entire event, but defeated Clancy and Artacho 2-1 (17-21, 21-17, 15-11) while Laboureur and Schulz topped Brunner and Betschart also in three sets (14-21, 24-22, 15-9).

The Beach Pro Tour calendar resumes for the women in two weeks, from May 19-22, when two events will be held simultaneously – a Challenge tournament in Kuşadası, Turkey, and a Futures in Madrid, Spain.

Quick links:
Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Youtube