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16/03/2016

Carambula’s Camburi Celebration

Vitória, Brazil, March 16, 2016 - With two of the world’s best men’s beach volleyball teams missing in action due to rest and precaution, the action here Tuesday featured one round of pool play competition as Italian Adrian Carambula celebrated his 28th birthday on Camburi beach at the $150,000 Vitória Open.

With the Vitória Open being the third of three FIVB World Tour events in Brazil during a four week period, the silver medal men’s finishers from the first two stops in Maceio and Rio de Janeiro (Evandro Goncalves/Pedro Solberg) are taking a break from international competition.

Quick links
•    Vitória Open website
•    Qualification - Men
•    Qualification - Women
•    Main draw - Men
•    Main draw - Women

“Since we are already qualified for the Olympics, it was better not to risk injuries along with the strain of playing three events in a four week period with hot and humid conditions,” said Pedro after losing to the young Polish team of Piotr Kantor/Bartosz Losiak in the Rio Grand slam gold medal match. Two weeks earlier in Maceio, Evandro and Pedro dropped the golden finale to Americans Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena.

Dalhausser and Lucena were scheduled to compete this week on Camburi beach, but withdrew Monday for medical reasons. With the Dalhausser/Lucena early withdrawal, compatriots Tri Bourne and Mark Burik filled the spot. Burik is a replacement for John Hyden, who injured his back a month ago before playing with Bourne in Maceio where the pair finished 17th.

BIRTHDAY COMEBACK

Back to Carambula, who recorded his first big win on his birthday with Alex Ranghieri. “Yes, I have won beach volleyball matches on my birthday, but none bigger than this. It's Olympic qualifying now, so every match is important. After losing the first set today against Qatar, we played with a lot more energy. It is the first time we have played them, so we had to make some adjustment in our attack. Tomorrow will be tough also as we have to prepare for the Polish gold medal winners from Rio.”

Ranghieri, who will celebrate his 29th birthday in mid-June after the close of qualifying for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on the FIVB World Tour, said the difference was “Adrian blew out the candles on his cake between the first and second set. He got his wish for a birthday win. Please tell the world that when he takes off his hat, he looks 38.”

As the ninth-seeded Carambula and Ranghieri were posting a 2-1 (20-22, 21-8, 15-8) win in 49 minutes over 24th-seeded Jefferson Santos Pereira and Cherif Younousse of Qatar, eighth-seeded Kantor and Losiak out-lasted 25th-seeded Grant O'Gorman and Sam Pedlow of Canada 2-1 (21-16, 16-21, 17-15) in a 49-minute Pool H match.

After the teams play the Canadians and Qatar pair to start play Thursday, the Italians and Poles will meet in the afternoon with a possible bye for the first-round of elimination at stake. Carambula and Ranghieri defeated Kantor and Losiak in an elimination match last July at the Gstaad Major in Switzerland as the Italians advanced to the final four before losing their final two matches.

RICARDO & ALVARO

Brazil's Ricardo Santos receives the Mikasa at the Vitoria Open

With the retirement of Emanuel Rego, long-time partner Ricardo Santos is playing with Alvaro Filho as the 18th-seeded Brazilian pair posted a 2-0 (21-18, 21-16) Pool B win in 42 minutes over the 15th-seeded Grimalt cousins (Esteban and Marco) of Chile. The Chilean cousins were the victors in Emanuel’s last FIVB World Tour match last Friday in Rio de Janeiro.

Second-place finishers together at the 2013 FIVB World Championships in Stare Jablonki, Poland, Ricardo and Alvaro will play second-seeded Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson of the United States Thursday morning followed by the Argentinean pair in the afternoon. The Americans defeated 31st-seeded qualifiers Julian Azaad and Pablo Bianchi of Argentina 2-0 (21-12, 22-20) in 36 minutes Wednesday.

BACK HOME ON CAMBURI

With the FIVB World Tour returning to Vitória and Camburi beach, the featured pair in the tournament is top-seeded local residents Alison Cerutti and Bruno Oscar Schmidt. The reigning FIVB world champions, Alison and Bruno won their first Pool A match Wednesday by defeating 32nd-seeded qualifiers Dmitri Barsouk and Nikita Liamin of Russia 2-1 (20-22, 21-17, 15-11) in 47 minutes.

Alison Cerutti and Brazil's Bruno Oscar Schmidt pump fists

The 30-year-old Alison, who played his very first FIVB World Tour match on Camburi in 2006 with Harley Marques, and the 29-year-old Bruno will conclude Pool A action Thursday against 17th-seeded Ingrosso twins (Matteo and Paolo) of Italy and 16th-seeded Youssef Krou/Edouard Rowlandson of France. The Brazilians have a combined 4-0 mark against the two European pairs with Alison and Bruno eliminating Krou and Rowlandson at the 2015 FIVB World Championships

WHAT’S NEXT

Following the Vitória Open, the FIVB World Tour will take a two-week break before resuming action April 4-8 men’s-only event in Doha, Qatar. Before returning to Brazil for the Fortaleza Open at the end of April, two double-gender events will be staged in China at Xiamen (April 12-17) and Fuzhou (April 19-24).

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