Chile’s Grimalt & Grimalt win South American Tour Finals with FIVB Volleyball Empowerment coach support
Uruguay’s Hannibal & Llambias and Paraguay’s Laura & Michelle earn bronze, also with support from the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme
Pairs from Brazil collect the remaining three medals
Representatives of Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay, three federations whose beach volleyball programmes benefit from FIVB Beach Volleyball Empowerment support, lined up among the medallists at the CSV Beach Volleyball South American Tour Finals held last week in Uberlandia, Brazil.
Chile’s Marco Grimalt & Esteban Grimalt topped the men’s podium to triumph as continental champions, while Uruguay’s Hans Hannibal & Nicolas Llambias and Paraguay’s Laura Ovelar & Michelle Valiente picked up the men’s and the women’s bronze medals, respectively.
Brazil’s Agatha Bednarczuk & Rebecca Cavalcanti beat compatriots Taina Bigi & Victoria Lopes in the women’s final, while another Brazilian duo, Evandro Oliveira & Arthur Mariano, collected the men’s silver.
Chile’s beach volleyball programme has so far been granted coach support of CHF 252,000, in addition to CHF 9,500 worth of beach volleyball equipment from FIVB Volleyball Empowerment. Uruguay’s beach volleyball department has been allocated a total of CHF 267,000 as coach support and CHF 19,000 as beach volleyball equipment. Their national teams are coached by Puerto Rican instructor Juan Cartagena. The women’s national beach volleyball teams of Paraguay have so far been supported with a total of CHF 180,000 in coach support from FIVB Volleyball Empowerment, and their national federation’s beach volleyball programme has received another CHF 5,000 for national team coaches development and CHF 9,000 in beach volleyball equipment.
In Saturday’s men's final (pictured in the main photo; credits: Eliezer), as the crowds cheered, Esteban & Marco Grimalt, Chile’s number one duo, delivered an outstanding performance and defeated top-seeded Evandro & Arthur. They clinched the title by a convincing 2-0 (21-17, 21-13).
Earlier in the day, in a semi-final clash, the gold medal winning pair beat another pair from Brazil, Adrielson Dos Santos & Arthur Da Silva in a hard-fought 2-1 (21-9, 18-21, 15-13). This was the only loss the medal winners suffered at the tournament.
For the fourth time this season, duo from Uruguay Hannibal & Llambías secured a place on the podium, having also secured two silver medals, after only a year together as a team. After losing to Evandro & Arthur by 2-0 (21-9, 21-17) in the semi-finals, they battled for the bronze against Adrielson & Arthur and celebrated a 2-0 (21-17, 21-13) victory.
Men’s results and standings
In the women’s tournament, Paraguay's Laura & Michelle did not drop a single set in their three matches on the way to the semi-finals, but then their victorious run was stopped by top-seeded home favourites Agatha & Rebecca with a 2-0 (21-12, 21-14) defeat. The battle for the bronze was a tense affair. Despite losing the first set, Laura & Michelle fought point by point for a 2-1 (20-22, 21-13, 15-11) comeback against Argentina's three-time Olympian Ana Gallay & Brenda Churin to clinch the bronze.
The women's final proved a fantastic watch for fans: a showdown between Taina & Victoria and Agatha & Rebecca, both of Brazil, was decided in a tie-breaker. Taina & Victoria, players of Praia Clube Uberlandia, the club that hosted the competition, secured a hard-fought first set and took the lead. However, Agatha & Rebecca won the second set to level the game and went on to win the match at 2-1 (22-44, 21-19, 15-8).
Women’s results and standings
Brazilian showdown in the women's final: Agatha & Rebecca defeat Taina & Victoria. (Photo credits: Eliezer)
15 women’s and 13 men’s duos from nine different countries took part in the Finals.
The thrilling conclusion of the South American Beach Volleyball Tour in Uberlandia not only saw Grimalt & Grimalt and Agatha & Rebecca crowned as champions in the grand final, but also revealed the countries that secured the most points in the seven stages held during the 2023-2024 season: Chile in the men's category and Brazil on the women's side.