After two weeks in Mexico and one in China, the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour is back in Brazil for a third time in 2024 as the country’s capital Brasília is set to host an Elite16 event this week, from May 1-5.

The tournament held this week at the Parque da Cidade will have major implications in the last chapters of the race to qualify for the Paris Olympics as after it, just two Elite16s, in Espinho and Ostrava, and one Challenge, in Stare Jablonski, will take place before the June 9 deadline.

• Watch the Brasília Elite16 live with your FREE 7-day access to VBTV.

With teams grinding to collect each and any points they can to boost their FIVB Provisional Olympic Ranking totals and take them inside the top 17 before the deadline comes, expect exciting duels to take place in Brasília over the next few days.

Critical week for Dutch men

The internal race between teams from the same country will be on focus once again and the duel between Dutch men’s duos is definitely one to follow this week in Brazil as all three teams with Olympic aspirations will not only play in Brasília, but also start the tournament in the main draw, being in a great position to score points.

Stefan Boermans and Yorick De Groot hold all the cards this week as they only have nine results accounted for in the Olympic period and will add each point they earn this week in Brazil to their rankings total. Currently with 7,400 points, the two, who won the season-opening Doha Elite16 in March, will likely pass Steven van de Velde and Matthew Immers (7,620) this week and could even catch Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medalists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen (8,300) if they make it to the semifinals in Brazil.

A similar scenario can be found in the American three-way battle for spots in Paris, with all three teams making the trip south to Brazil as they chase more valuable Olympic points. Andy Benesh and Miles Partain are in the most comfortable position among the three, with 8,220 points and just 11 results considered, which gives them the ability to charge ahead with a good finish in Brasília. Trevor Crabb and Theo Brunner (7,860), who will begin in the qualifier, and Miles Evans and Chase Budinger (7,460), who start in the main draw, are now in a direct battle for second place among the teams in the country and the results of this week’s event will be of great important to their plans.

Brasília Elite16 – Men’s Entry List

The Brasília Elite16 will also offer teams sitting just above the qualification an opportunity to get some breathing room as the first team below the line, Cubans Jorge Alayo and Noslen Diaz (7,040), won’t make the trip to Brazil. With their absence, Austria’s Julian Hörl/Alexander Horst (7,260), Qatar’s Cherif Younousse/Ahmed Tijan (7,200) and Chile’s Marco Grimalt/Esteban Grimalt (7,080) won’t want to miss the opportunity to add to their totals this week. The Chileans, who are fresh from winning the Xiamen Challenge on Sunday, are the only of the three set to start the event in the qualifier.

Swiss and German women continue to battle

On the women’s side, the races involving Swiss and German teams have been as tight as it gets and an important chapter will be written this week in Brasília. Competition between Swiss duos has been the closest among any country as Joana Mäder/Anouk Vergé-Dépré (7,440) and Zoé Vergé-Dépré/Esmée Böbner (7,360) are separated by just 80 points heading into this week’s event, where both of them are set to begin in the qualifier. With their recent victory at the Tepic Elite16, Nina Brunner and Tanja Hüberli improved their total to 8,760 points and are in a safe position for the remainder of the race.

Brasília Elite16 – Women’s Entry List

The German duel has been more comprehensive, with all three teams involved in the dispute separated by no more than 300 points. Right now, Cinja Tillmann/Svenja Müller (7,660) and Laura Ludwig/Louisa Lippmann (7,480) would take the berths, but Sandra Ittlinger and Karla Borger (7,360) are as motivated as ever following their victory at the Xiamen Challenge on Sunday – they will, however, start the Brasília Elite16 in the qualifier, while their opponents are guaranteed in the main draw.

The battle between Canadian duos could also take an important turn this week in Brazil. While Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson (9,620) are safe in the Olympic Rankings top five, the situation between Sarah Pavan/Molly McBain (6,540) and Heather Bansley/Sophie Bukovec (5,600) is still wide open. That’s because Bansley and Bukovec have only 11 results in the qualification period and will very likely cut the difference this week – they could even surpass Pavan and McBain if they make it to the podium in Brazil. Both teams will begin the event in the qualifier and, besides fighting to be the second-best-ranked Canadian team, they also need to worry about securing a spot in the top 17 of the Rankings.

Teams occupying the last positions inside the qualification zone will also have a big opportunity to improve their situations this week, most notably France’s Lézana Placette/Alexia Richard (6,920), who start in the main draw, and Lithuania’s Aine Raupelyte/Monika Paulikiene (6,900), who begin in the qualifier.

Brasília Elite16 – Match Schedule

The Brasília Elite16 begins on Wednesday, with the qualifier featuring 16 teams per gender – only four will advance. Pool play will develop from Thursday to Friday, with the Round of 12 and the quarterfinals taking place on Saturday. The semifinals and the medal matches are scheduled for Sunday.

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