CEV Queen & King of the Court European Finals 2022 have started with a bang. On the first day of qualification matches the Utrecht crowd next to the BetCity Arena on the Jaarbeursplein was treated to cutting edge beach volleyball. The fight was on right from the get-go, three teams in both genders have secured their ticket to the Main Draw. Another two teams have seen their hopes of a crown fade, as they are to go home.
Men
The teams securing their place in the Group Stage are Day/Cuzmiciov (ISR), Pascariuc/Leitner (AUT) and Andersson/Brink from Sweden. The biggest upset came in the 5th place playoff, Latvian Edgars Tocs (4th place in the Tokyo Olympics) and Kristians Fokerots had to leave the tournament after finishing in second place during the all-deciding match. Dutch Nikita Artamonov and Lennaert Hogenhout won that playoff, which gave them a spot in Wednesday’s second round of qualification.
Women
A Polish, Ukranian and Lithuanian team have qualified for the Main Draw on the women’s side. Gruszczynska/Wachowicz, the Makhno twins and Dumbauskaite/Grudzinskaite all won their pool today. The two teams going home are Windelstad/Steinsvåg (NOR) and Williams/Pospísilová (CZE). England’s Daisy Mumby and Jessica Grimson won the 5th place playoff, they can still dream of a spot in the Group Stage.
Rewatch all of today’s matches here.
Wednesday
There are still two spots per gender up for grabs for the Group Stage on Wednesday. The winners of the two games qualify for the main event. Check out the line-up here.
Tournament preview
Our commentator Lewie Lett sat down with tournament director and inventor of King of the Court Wilco Nijland for an in-depth preview. Check it out below.
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and @cevolleyball on Instagram. Also check out CEV YouTube for live streaming and King of the Court YouTube for more in-depth content.