Germans Louisa Lippmann and Linda Bock are set to make their first appearance in the main draw of a Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Elite event at the iconic Swiss village of Gstaad this week, after the two overcame the qualifier of the women’s tournament on Wednesday.

Besides the Germans, duos from the Netherlands, France, Finland, Czechia and the United States also won their first matches in the Swiss Alps and earned the right to be on the court when the main draw starts on Thursday.

• Watch Beach Pro Tour Gstaad Elite live on VBTV

A new team on the Beach Pro Tour in 2025, Lippmann and Bock had to succeed in a domestic battle to find their way to the main draw of the Gstaad Elite, the first event of this caliber that the two play together. With a solid performance, they topped compatriots Lea Kunst and Melanie Paul in straight sets (21-19, 21-17) in their only match of the day on Wednesday.

Lippmann, 30, and Bock, 25, have both started their careers playing indoor volleyball. A standout with the German national team, Lippmann moved to the beach in 2022 and had great success playing with the legendary Laura Ludwig, as the two got to represent their country at the Paris Olympics last year, finishing 19^th.

Bock, who was also part of the German national team during her volleyball career, moved to the sand after the end of the 2023-2024 club season. She didn’t start playing internationally until the beginning of 2025, and Lippmann and her won their first Beach Pro Tour medal as partners just three days ago, as they finished second in the Warmia Mazury Challenge.

In the main draw in Gstadd, the Germans will be part of Pool C, alongside Brazil's Carol Salgado/Rebecca Cavalcanti, Canada's Brandie Wilkerson/Melissa Humana-Paredes and Ukraine's Maryna Hladun/Tetiana Lazarenko.

The Netherlands and France advance two teams each

The Netherlands and France were the most successful countries in the women’s qualifier in Gstaad, with each of them advancing two teams to the main draw. The Dutch qualified teams were Raisa Schoon and Mila Konink, who eliminated Americans Kimberly Hildreth and Teegan Van Gunst in the tie-breaker (19-21, 21-18, 15-4), and Emi van Driel and Wies Bekhuis, who prevailed over Brazilians Andressa Cavalcanti and Tainá Bigi in straight sets (21-19, 21-12).

France saw the two teams that represented the country at last year’s Paris Olympics move forward – Aline Chamereau and Clémence Vieira dominated Swiss Muriel Bossart and Nadine Demierre to a two-set (21-16, 22-20) victory, while Lézana Placette and Alexia Richard swept (24-22, 24-22) Americans Savvy Simo and Abby Van Winkle.

Completing the list of qualified teams in Gstaad are Czechs Márie-Sara Štochlová/Marketa Svozilova, who defeated Americans Hailey Harward and Molly Phillips 2-0 (22-20, 21-15), Finns Niina Ahtiainen and Taru Lathi, who swept (21-16, 21-14) Dutch Brecht Piersma and Noa Sonneville, and Americans Julia Donlin and Lexy Denaburg, who prevailed over Lithuanian Olympians Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte in the tie-breaker (15-21, 21-13, 15-9).

Beach Pro Tour Gstaad Elite – Match Schedule & Results

The women’s tournament in Gstaad continues on Thursday, with 18 pool play matches. The remaining six pool play matches will be held on Friday, as well as the six Round of 18 duels. The Round of 12 and the quarterfinals will take place on Saturday, with the semifinals and medal matches concluding the event on Sunday.

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