For an Olympic ticket

“There will be a showdown in Ostrava”

Julian Hörl and Alex Horst were eliminated in the intermediate round of the Beach Volleyball Challenger in Stare Jablonki (Poland) on Saturday morning, finishing in 17th place. This means that the decision in the head-to-head duel with the Grimalts (Chi) for the 18th Olympic ticket via the world rankings has been postponed to the last Pro Tour tournament in the Czech Republic.

"We weren't able to make a mark in the Olympic ranking, but we won the most important match for us in this tournament, the direct duel against the Grimalts on Friday," said Alex Horst after the 2-0 defeat (-16, -18) against Varenhorst/Luini (NL) in Stare Jablonki.

This means that the decision on the Olympic ticket has been postponed one last time. "There will be a showdown in Ostrava," says Hörl from Saalfelden, who was particularly challenged after recovering from coronavirus. "Our goal is to get into the Olympic rankings under our own steam. We want to qualify in the Czech Republic and then make the step out of the group!"

Things get underway in the Czech Republic on Wednesday, where the Chilean duo Grimalts/Grimalts, who are still tied on points in the ranking for Paris but ranked behind the Austrians, will also start in the qualifiers. Both teams will only earn points if they reach the round of 16.