Tanja Hüberli and Nina Brunner win their quarter-final and play for the medals in the Olympic beach volleyball tournament. Esmée Böbner and Zoé Vergé-Dépré fail.
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- Beach volleyball players Tanja Hüberli and Nina Brunner reach the semi-finals at the Olympic Games.
- The Swiss duo beat the world champions from the USA, Hughes/Cheng, in two sets 21:18, 21:19.
- In the semi-finals, they will face either Spain's Daniela Alvarez/Tania Moreno or Canada's Melissa Humana-Paredes/Brandie Wilkerson.
In the duel between the European champions and the world champions, Hüberli/Brunner beat the Americans Sara Hughes/Kelly Cheng 21:18, 21:19. The two teams, who were convincing on their way to the quarter-finals, produced some spectacular rallies. Defensive player Brunner in particular was able to shine time and again.
The 31-year-old from Zurich and the 28-year-old from Zug, who have yet to drop a set in five matches in Paris, now face two more matches. In the semi-finals, they will face either the Spaniards Daniela Alvarez/Tania Moreno or the Canadians Melissa Humana-Paredes/Brandie Wilkerson.
Three years ago, Brunner and Hüberli were defeated in the round of 16 at the Olympic Games in Tokyo by their compatriots Joana Mäder (then Heidrich) and Anouk Vergé-Dépré. The Swiss women later won the bronze medal.
Quarter-final exit for Vergé-Dépré/Böbner
Meanwhile, Anouk's sister Zoé Vergé-Dépré had to bury her medal dream. Together with Esmée Böbner, she lost to the Australian duo Taliqua Clancy/Mariafe Artacho 19:21, 21:16, 12:15. The Olympic debutants, who had qualified for the quarter-finals with four wins in a row, put in a good performance overall.
After losing the opening set, the 24-year-old from Lucerne and the 26-year-old from Bern forced a third round. They had previously won both deciding sets in Paris, but failed in the third. The Australians, Olympic silver medallists in Tokyo, were extremely composed at the decisive moment.
