Jackson Henriquez and Farid Mussa celebrate the second victory of Venezuela |
Valencia, Venezuela, June 2, 2012 – The CSV Men's Beach Volleyball Continental Cup finals began at Bicentenario Naguanaguana Complex in Venezuela on Saturday with the hosts taking on Chile for a place at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
From very early in the morning the crowd waited to see Chilean cousins Marcos and Esteban Grimalt as well as Cristóbal Martínez and Rodrigo Salinas as they took on Igor Hernández-Jesús Villafañez and Jackson Henríquez-Farid Mussa. The venue was especially built for this important South American tournament.
Venezuela won both matches on the opening and now stand on the brink of qualification, with just one victory guaranteeing them a place in London. In the case of tie there will be a Golden Set to the best of 15 points – with players chosen by both coaching teams.
The first match was played by Igor Hernández-Jesús Villafañez who beat Cristóbal Martínez-Rodrigo Salinas 2-0 (21-9, 21-15) without any difficultz.
“It was important for us to start with a victory because it gives us confidence in the tournament. We felt very good playing even though we did not know the Chilean team. It was our first match against them but the result was very positive,” Hernández said.
“This was an easy match for us, with the support of our fans, knowing all the people that love us and support us gives us an extra boost so we hope they also come tomorrow helping us getting the berth for London Olympic Games 2012," Villafañez added.
The second match saw Jackson Henríquez-Farid Mussa take on the Grimalts in a very exciting match. The hosts eventually picked up a 2-0 (21-18, 21-16) win to take them further into the lead.
“It was a very exciting match, and our condition of host team made all the stadium help us, which made it even stronger," Henríquez said. "We have been working on this court in the last month and with over seven years of this weather so to chose to play here was the best option."
Mussa added that to work as a team, the side needed to dedicate themselves entirely to this competition.
1 - IGOR HERNANDEZ-JESUS VILLAFAÑE (VEN 1 v CHI 2) CRISTOBAL MARTINEZ-RODRIGO SALINAS 2-0 (21-09, 21-15).
2 - JACKSON HENRIQUEZ-FARID MUSSA (VEN 2 v CHI 1) MARCO GRIMALT-ESTEBAN GRIMALT 2-0 (21-18, 21-16).
Sunday’s fixture:
3 - IGOR HERNANDEZ-JESUS VILLAFAÑE (VEN 1 v CHI 1) MARCO GRIMALT-ESTEBAN GRIMALT
4 - JACKSON HENRIQUEZ-FARID MUSSA (VEN 2 v CHI 2) CRISTOBAL MARTINEZ-RODRIGO SALINAS
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