Beach Volleyball Otera Open Kristiansand 2010, top player prospects
Beach Volleyball is always on the go!
The thrilling activities of beach volleyball keep the players and fans on the move throughout the year. The sixth and final Grand Slam of 2010 Season just finished in Stare Jablonki, Poland and concluded wonderful results in both women and men’s categories. The SWATCH FIVB World Tour made a stop at the next place in Norway for the annual international Beach Volleyball event, the Otera Open Kristiansand 2010.
The double gender event, the Otera Open, is similar to the Mazury Orlen Grand Slam but the prize money is less than the Grand Slam tournaments. It is the fourth consecutive season that the tournament has been organized in the Scandinavian country, Norway.
The tournament has a fixed schedule of:
1- Country Quota Matches (Monday)
2- Qualification Tournament (Tuesday)
3- Money Rounds (Wednesday)
4- Main Draw (Thursday)
5- Quarter Finals (Friday)
6- Final Four Matches (Saturday)
The Otera Open hit the City Centre Courts in Kristiansand with women’s Country Quota Playoff matches on Monday, 9th August 2010.
After Monday, the Qualification Tournament determined the “money rounds” for women and set a field for the 32-team Main Draw. Afterwards the “final four” matches will be played. The women’s activity will end on Saturday, 14th August 2010. The men’s event is lagging behind with a gap of one day. After Country Quota matches on Tuesday, the Qualification tournament will lead to the “money” rounds for men. Men’s “final four” matches will be held on Sunday. It is the fourth-straight SWATCH FIVB event in Kristiansand and the first three titles have been claimed by Russia, Brazil, and Spain.
The winners of the last tournament have fair chances to climb-up the higher spots in Otera Open.The American Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers proved their steel in the last Mazury Orlen Grand Slam Men’s Tournament at Hotel Anders’ courts in Stare Jablonki, Poland and look terrific this season. On the other hand, tough Brazilian pair, Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca topped the women’s side in the last FIVB Grand Slam and took away the gold medal. They enjoy the best physique coupled with great beach volleyball skills.
Dalhausser/Rogers actually tied a record of scoring seven titles in men’s single-season after finishing the SWATCH FIVB Mazury Orlen Grand Slam with a bombastic win. The first record was set by Brazilian Emanuel Rego and Ricardo Santos in 2004 and 2007. The other Brazilians, Roberto Lopes/Franco Neto and Emanuel/Jose Loiola established the record in 1995 and 1999, respectively. Dalhausser and Rogers also entered the prestigious group of holies and they certainly aim to lead the group with their wins.
Dalhausser and Rogers exhibited an electrifying game in Italy, Norway, Switzerland, and lately in Poland to take a lead in the tournament. The last Polish victory was a milestone in their career. Their prospects are high in the on-going SWATCH FIVB Otera Open Kristiansand 2010.
Similarly, the women champions at the Mazury Orlen Grand Slam, the top-seeded Juliana and Larissa also matched their performance with former record holders, American players, Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh by scoring the highest number of titles in a season. May-Treanor/Walsh actually set a record of achieving four gold medals in the SWATCH FIVB Grand Slams in 2003. The strong Brazilian duo is all set to follow the tradition and plan to go beyond previous records.
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