World champions Ondřej Perušič and David Schweiner confirmed the expectations and topped the podium at the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Challenge event held in Alanya, Türkiye, this week.

The Czech stars were among the three teams to win medals in the event held at the Beach Sports Center facility on Sunday, joining silver medalists Téo Rotar and Arnaud Gautiher-Rat of France and bronze medalists George Wanderley and Saymon Barbosa of Brazil.

• Watch the Beach Pro Tour Alanya Challenge replays on VBTV

In a gold medal match that featured two very distinct sets, the world champions cruised in the first one and were taken to overtime in the second before pulling out a 2-0 (21-13, 23-21) victory against Rotar and Gauthier-Rat.

“The main difference between the two sets was our side out,” Perušič reflected. “In the first set, we were very steady offensively, and our defense also worked well. They served much better in the second set, and that helped them come back. They had the lead until the end, but we managed to turn things around, and I’m glad that we did it, because having to play a third set would be tough.”

It was the second victory for Perušič and Schweiner in the 2025 season of the Beach Pro Tour – the two took gold in the first event of the year, the Yucatán Challenge, held in March. Preparing to defend the world title they won in 2023 in about five months in Australia, the two-time Olympians also made it to the podium at the Ostrava Elite, two weeks ago, taking bronze.

“It was a very special experience to play here,” Schweiner revealed. “The atmosphere was amazing and the match was a great one, but I’m glad it’s over because it was really tough to play in this heat. I’m proud of the work of our entire team because teamwork makes the dream work, right?”

Rotar and Paris Olympian Gauthier-Rat, who joined forces before the start of the season, got their second-straight podium appearance on the Beach Pro Tour 2025, improving one step from their third-place finish at the Xiamen Challenge, in May.

Beach Pro Tour Alanya Challenge – Results

Brazilians go from the qualifier to the podium

Like the French, Brazilians George and Saymon earned a spot in the podium in Alanya after five days of hard work under the heat of the Turkish city as the two started the tournament in Wednesday’s qualifier.

In order to claim their first medal as partners, the two defeated Australian Olympians Mark Nicolaidis and Izac Carracher in straight sets (21-16, 21-19) in the bronze medal match.

The next Challenge event on the 2025 Beach Pro Tour calendar will be held in Warmia Mazury, Poland, from June 25-29.

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