Czechs Kylie Neuschaeferova and Martina Maixnerova became the biggest sensations of the 2025 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championship on Wednesday, when they advanced to the Round of 16 of the tournament held in Adelaide.

Seeded 46th in the tournament, the Europeans had a spectacular performance in the Round of 32 in Australia, sending fourth-seeded Americans Terese Cannon and Megan Kraft back home with an emphatic 2-0 (21-12, 21-14) victory.

• Watch the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships on VBTV

Kylie, 23, and Maixnerova, 26, weren't originally among the 48 teams qualified for the World Championship, but were pulled from the reserve list a few days before the start of the event after Nigerians Pamela Bawa and Esther Mbah withdrew.

Placed in Pool C, they had a difficult start in their tournament, dropping their first two matches without winning a single set, but managed to make it out of the pool thanks to a big sweep against Brazilians Vitória Rodrigues and Hegeile 'Hegê' Almeida.

After overcoming Paraguayans Michelle Valiente and Giuliana Poletti in the 'lucky loser' round, they were faced with Cannon and Kraft, who won Pool D with an undefeated campaign and are currently in third place in the FIVB World Ranking, and defied the odds to take them down with a nearly-perfect performance.

Kylie and Maixnerova now wait for the duel between the Austrian Klinger sisters Ronja and Dorina and Americans Kelly Cheng and Molly Shaw in the Round of 32 to know their next opponents in Adelaide in the Round of 16 on Thursday.

Thâmela and Victoria survive three-set battle

One hour later, FIVB World Ranking leaders Thâmela Coradello and Victoria Lopes of Brazil survived a three-set battle to avoid another upset at the start of the day in Adelaide. The Brazilians were pushed to their limits by French Olympians Lézana Placette and Alexia Richard, but triumphed 2-1 (21-17, 15-21, 19-17) and continue alive.

On Thursday, in the Round of 16, the South Americans will play the winners of the match involving Japanese Asami Shiba and Reika Murakami and Ukrainians Tetiana Lazarenko and Daria Romaniuk, which will be held later on Wednesday.

FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships: Match schedule & Results

Another six Round of 32 matches will be held on Wednesday in Adelaide, determining all the matchups for the Round of 16 on Thursday.

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