Latvian standouts Tina Graudina & Anastasija Samoilova, number four in the World Ranking, headline Pool C. They are yet to win their first gold on the Beach Pro Tour this year, after two silvers. Seeded third in Joao Pessoa, they will find out their first opponents after the qualifications. If they win their first game, they will face the winner of the match between French Olympians Clemence Vieira & Aline Chamereau and Brazilian duo Vitoria Rodrigues & Hegeile Almeida.
The Pool E line-up has two vacancies to be taken by qualifiers, who will challenge pool leaders Anouk Verge-Depre & Zoe Verge-Depre of Switzerland and USA’s Terese Cannon & Megan Kraft, teams number seven and eight in the World Ranking. The Swiss Olympians have medaled at four of their five most recent Tour appearances. Cannon & Kraft, on the other hand, started the season with a Quintana Roo Elite silver, but then failed to get past the quarterfinals at their next four participations.
Just two pf the participants are known in Pool F as well. Paris 2024 Olympic silver medalists Melissa Humana-Paredes & Brandie Wilkerson of Canada will try to extend the winning streak that led them to a Montreal Elite gold last month. Experienced Brazilians Talita Antunes & Taiana Lima, both in their 40s, will try to build upon the Joao Pessoa Elite16 silver they earned last year.
A single round of eight women’s qualification matches, serving off at 11:20 local time (14:20 UTC) on Wednesday, will fill the eight remaining main draw vacancies. The qualifier bracket is also filled with strong contestants, including the likes of Lithuanian Olympians Monika Paulikiene & Aine Raupelyte, French Olympians Lezana Placette & Alexia Richard and Dutch Olympians Katja Stam & Raisa Schoon, to name a few. For Katja Stam, who has been recovering from an injury, this will be the first Beach World Tour event since the Doha Finals in December.
