Tournament in Doha

Beach volleyball elite start the Olympic season

Two of Austria's top teams start the beach volleyball pro tour this week at the first elite tournament of the season in Doha. It is the prelude to the Olympic season.

As the 16 starting places are just as competitive as the 24 for the Olympics, which are in the spotlight this year, Robin Seidl/Moritz Pristauz and Dorina and Ronja Klinger will have to compete in the qualifiers in Qatar on Tuesday. The other ÖVV pairs hoping to make it to the Olympics will not be competing until later in the spring.

Julian Hörl/Alexander Horst have the best chance of getting one of the 17 tickets per gender for the Summer Games in Paris via the Olympic ranking list. Thanks to last year's strong results, they only have to compete twice before June. Seidl/Pristauz are also well in the running after several top results at Challenger and Future tournaments. "We have to keep pushing and collect good points. It's doable, but we have to continue to perform well," emphasized Pristauz. Seidl is also confident: "Our first season together was a cool, very good one. Now we have to keep performing."

Olympics, European Championships and tournament in Vienna
Horst wants to make it to the Summer Games for the fourth time in total; the collaboration with Hörl that began in 2022 has already borne fruit. "Last year, we created a good starting position for further Olympic qualification. Now it's time to fulfill our dream of serving under the Eiffel Tower with a good build-up and sensible competition planning," said the veteran.

The 2024 Olympics are just one of several highlights alongside the European Championships and the Pro Tour tournament in Vienna. The home event in mid-July at Heumarkt will be one of the nine Elite 16 tournaments taking place for the first time and is also the dress rehearsal for Paris.

While things look promising for Horst/Hörl and Seidl/Pristauz in the adjusted Olympic ranking, which includes the best twelve tournament results since the beginning of last year, the ÖVV women's teams will probably have to rely on the Nations Cup. The Klinger sisters and Katharina Schützenhöfer/Lena Plesiutschnig would like to get a ticket via this second route.