One of the most successful countries in the 2023 season of the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour so far, the United States are ready to make another strong campaign in the women’s tournament of next week’s Elite16 event in Montréal, Canada.

With three teams guaranteed in the main draw of the tournament that will be held at the Notre Dame Island from July 26-30, the Americans will be looking to make it to the podium in an Elite16 event for a fifth-straight time.

• Watch the Beach Pro Tour Montréal Elite16 matches live on VBTV

American teams have won as many as five medals – two gold, two silver, one bronze – in the last four Elite16 events of the season, standing on the podium in Tepic, Mexico, Uberlândia, Brazil, Ostrava, Czechia, and Gstaad, Switzerland. The only Elite16 podium without an American team was the one in the season-opening event in Doha, Qatar.

Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes, who won gold in Tepic and silver in Gstaad, are seeded second in the Montréal main draw, just behind the reigning world champions, Brazilians Eduarda ‘Duda’ Lisboa and Ana Patrícia Ramos.

Right after them in the entry list are compatriots Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss, who secured the title in Uberlândia and finished third in Gstaad. The third American team guaranteed in the Montréal is formed by sixth-seeded Terese Cannon and Sarah Sponcil, who took silver in Ostrava.

Sandwiched between the Americans are Canadian Olympians Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson, in fourth place, and Australian Olympic medalists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho, who are fifth.

Brazil also have three teams in the Montréal Elite16 main draw, with Espinho Challenge champions Carol Salgado and Bárbara Seixas in seventh place and Ágatha Bednarczuk and Rebecca Cavalcanti, who took bronze in the Portuguese event, in ninth – between the Brazilians, in eighth place, are Thailand’s Taravadee Naraphornrapat and Worapeerachayakorn Kongphopsarutawadee.

Completing the main draw entry list in Montréal are Chinese Olympians Chen Xue and Xinyi Xia, in tenth place, the home duo of Sarah Pavan and Molly McBain, in 11^th, and Dutch Olympians Raisa Schoon and Katja Stam, in 12^th.

Beach Pro Tour Montréal Elite16 – Women’s Entry List

The United States have a fourth team entered to compete in the Montréal Elite16 in Betsi Flint and Julia Scoles, who are going to start their campaign in Canada in the qualifier, on Wednesday.

Other standouts in the qualifier are Germans Cinja Tillmann and Svenja Müller, the bronze medalist of last year’s FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championship, Brazilians Andressa Cavalcanti and Vitoria Rodrigues, who took silver in Espinho, and the new Canadian duo of Heather Bansley and Sophie Bukovec.

The main draw begins on Thursday, after the conclusion of the qualifier, and will have four pools with four teams each. The top three teams in each pool will take part in the elimination rounds, which will feature the Round of 12 and the quarterfinals, on Saturday. The semifinals and medal matches will be played on Sunday.

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