End of the Road for Canadian Teams in Brazil

Photo: FIVB

The Brasilia Open, held in Brazil's capital, ended today for Canadian beach volleyball. Ben Saxton and Christian Redmann, the last Canadians in the tournament, lost their two matches in the main draw, finishing 25th.

The first match was a tough one. The Canadians had to face Erdmann and Matysik, strong candidates to be one of the German Olympic teams in London. These Germans had made an impression last season when they gave world champions Alison and Emanuel from Brazil a run for their money. Saxton and Redmann had a nervous beginning, which allowed the Germans to open a good lead on the scoreboard. The Germans won the first set 21-14. In the second, the Canadians resisted well and had better control of Erdmann's strong serve but lost 23-25.

Later, in the lower bracket, they tried to keep their chances alive in the tournament against Austrians Huber and Seidl, but lost in half an hour in straight sets: 17-21, 14-21.

Next stop for men's teams will be this coming week in Myslowice, Poland. The Brasilia Open ends on Sunday.