WINDHOEK – The Namibian beach volleyball junior women’s team of Kim Seebach and Stephanie Palmhert managed to carve themselves a place in the Nanjing Youth Olympic Games in China in August this year.
The pair achieved a top-6 finish at the African Qualifying Tournament in Accra, Ghana in addition to their combined silver medal.
In a thrilling final, the combination of Seebach and Palmhert came face to face with the Rwandan ladies team, defeating their East African opponents in the first set 21-17, before Rwanda came back strongly to take the 2nd set 21-19.
In extremely windy conditions, the decisive 3rd saw Namibia going down 17-19 against the Rwandians whom they previously dispatched 2-0 in the group stages of the tournament.
“To have qualified for Nanjing and to be rated as one of Africa’s best is a huge success for the two girls and for the overall well being of Namibian beach volleyball,” commented proud coach Achim Lück.
The boys team of Jan Eric Sack and Roman von Ludwiger faced tough competition in their group phase against the likes of Nigera, Congo, Sierra Leone and Rwanda.
The Namibian pair was unable to reach the top six teams after a disappointing finish on the overall standings.
Each continent will be represented by six nations to make up the 30 teams travelling to China, while two places will be reserved for the host nation to make up the required 32 teams per gender.
This weekend sees local beach volleyball teams competing for the Zone VI U17 and U19 Beach Volleyball Championships in Windhoek. Local beach volleyball authorities expressed confidence that Namibia will have enough ammunition to qualify for the African Beach Volleyball Cup slated for next month.
By Staff Reporter