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Last weekend was the Edinburgh Open, the first 4-star UKBT event organised by Edinburgh Beach Volleyball Club.
With 50 total entries across the men’s and women’s divisions, we saw a deep pool of talent vying for a place in the 16-team events. Both draws showcased a number of International athletes, in particular the women’s division was particularly stacked, and was arguably one of the highest level UKBT events so far this year.
The event began with the Friday night qualifier event, with 6 women’s teams and 4 men’s teams both fighting for a spot in the main draw. With the qualifier being single elimination, all the matches played were hard fought battles. The men’s qualifier was won by Kyle Rasmussen and Mateusz Bobkowski, whilst Hannah Clark and Anna Bempedeli claimed victory on the women’s side.
The main event kicked off on Saturday morning, with a 4 pool format. Eyes were on the top seeds of the event, with both number 1 seeds being local teams. Ross Mckelvie and Jamie McHardy were looking to take down another medal after claiming a bronze in Northern Open 2 weeks prior.
Likewise on the ladies' side, Lynne Beattie and Mel Coutts were gunning for a win on home sand, having founded the club in 2017. On the men’s side, there were not many upsets, with 7 of the 8 top seeds making it through to the Quarterfinals. On the women’s side, 3 of the bottom 8 seeds fought their way through, winning tough matches to get them to day 2.
In the medal matches, there was some great volleyball played. Alice Zeimann and Katie Keefe, beat Kirsty Star and Sydney Stevens in the women’s final, with the winning team not dropping a set the entire tournament. The bronze match was a local affair, with Katie Barbour and Rachel Morrison claiming victory over Lynne Beattie and Mel Coutts.
In the men’s matches, a tense 3-set battle saw Sam Dunbavin and John Morgan win the gold against Andrew Van Rensburg and Niko Gleed, cementing a 4th medal for both teams in UKBT 4-star events this season. The bronze saw Ross Mckelvie and Jamie McHardy vanquish Iraj Saffae and Tom Lycett in a fun to watch match.
On reflection, the club states, "it was wonderful to see the event so well received by the players and the local crowds who gathered to watch the action from the promenade. A special thank you to Volleyball Photos for capturing the event, Civerinos Pizza for providing Centre Court chairs for the athletes (and Pizza!), and to City of Edinburgh Council Outdoor Education Team for some gazebos that protected us from the inevitable Scottish rain. We look forward to hosting more UKBT events over the season, and to delivering an even better 4* next year!”
Well done to all the players and Edinburgh Beach Volleyball for an incredible event!
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