Reo de Janeiro, Brazil, August 12, 2016 - Three pool winners will be trying to validate their preliminary successes in the women’s Beach Volleyball competition at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games by posting “Sweet 16” wins here Saturday to advance to the quarter-finals.
Led by FIVB World Tour leaders Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst of German (Pool D), the three teams will be meeting second-place group finishers Saturday. The lone confrontation between two second-place pool finishers will be a match between Madelein Meppelink and Marleen Van Iersel of The Netherlands and Joana Heidrich and Nadine Zumkehr of Switzerland.
Other pool winners in action Saturday will be Heather Bansley and Sarah Pavan of Canada (Pool E) against compatriots Jamie Broder and Kristina Valjas while Louise Bawden and Taliqua Clancy of Australia (Pool F) are challenged by Monika Brzostek and Kinga Kolosinska of Poland. The Aussies posted a seed-break-through win over Meppelink and Van Iersel to win their group.
Two Brazilian pairs posted “Sweet 16” wins Friday along Russians Ekaterina Birlova/Evgeniya Ukolova. Brazilians winners as expected were Talita Antunes/Larissa Franca and Agatha Bednarczuk/Barbara Seixas.
Saturday, August 13 schedule
12 p.m. - Heather Bansley/Sarah Pavan, Canada (No. 5-seeded) vs. Jamie Broder/Kristina Valjas, Canada (16)
3 p.m. - Isabelle Forrer/Anouk Verge-Depre, Switzerland (10) vs. Laura Ludwig/Kira Walkenhorst, Germany (4)
8 p.m. - Madelein Meppelink/Marleen Van Iersel, Netherlands (6) vs. Joana Heidrich/Nadine Zumkehr, Switzerland (17)
11 p.m. - Monika Brzostek/Kinga Kolosinska, Poland (12) vs. Louise Bawden/Taliqua Clancy, Australia (7)
Friday, August 12 results
• Agatha Bednarczuk/Barbara Seixas. Brazil def. Fan Wang/Yuan Yue, China (15), 2-0 (21-12, 21-16, 38 minutes)
• Talita Antunes/Larissa Franca, Brazil (1) def. Karla Borger/Britta Buthe, Germany (8), 2-0 (21-17, 21-19, 38)
• Ekaterina Birlova/Evgeniya Ukolova, Russia (24) def. Elsa Baquerizo/Liliana Fernandez, Spain, 2-0 (23-21, 24-22, 47)
• April Ross/Kerri Walsh Jennings, United States (3) vs. Laura Giombini/Marta Menegatti, Italy (9)