Tough loss to China

I am updating after our first match of pool play here at the World Championships in Stavanger, Norway.  We had drawn a Chinese team who are the 7th seed in the tournament and played them on center court today at noon.  

Center court was an amazing atmosphere with about 1000 people attending and loads of Canadian flags out!! Such a pleasure to play in front of a few fellow country men as any support network helps.  It was a fantastic day with plenty of direct sun and a slight warm breeze making center court a little stuffy. 

Ahren and I had a great warm up and were feeling superb.  We were able to bring that positive energy to the court and won the first set 23-21, fending off a game point advantage for the Chinese.  We battled hard and were paid off for our patience and tough serving. The second set was also a tight one and had us leading 12-9 at the technical timeout.  We were making great points from their left side player who is a more juvenile athlete in the Chinese program but we just couldn't build on the lead.  The second set finished at 28-26 for China even though we had 3 match point attempts with us serving.  They made some great blocking plays and I wound up getting aced on my line to put them back in the game for the last push.  

The third set saw us go down 4-1 on the first switch but we brought it back to what felt like a tight 11-9 score for China.  We had a few points to tie it but we just couldn't convert and wound up switching 14-11.  We brought it to 14-12 but unfortunately couldn't hold them off long enough to tie it.

Overall it was a great game for us and we proved to ourselves that we are able to compete with the top ranked teams in the world.  We displayed our grit and determination late in sets which isn't usually present in new teams so we are excited to build on this promising duo. Please check out the tournament photos where you can find some great actions shots of us!

Our next opponents will be Germany on Sunday at 11 Norwegian time so we will have plenty of rest and refocus time before we hear another whistle.  

All the best from Stavanger!

Martin

Start of the World Championships in Stavanger, Norway

My new partner Ahren Cadieux and I landed in Stavanger, Norway Tuesday evening after a fairly lengthy travel day from Toronto. We unfortunately missed a connection in Frankfurt due to complications so we spent a little more time in the airport lounges than anticipated. We are pleased to report we landed safely and to a lovely surprise! After preparing ourselves mentally for terrible weather, we landed in Stavanger at 8 at night to 22 degree blue skies!! It has been fabulous since our arrival and this fantastic weather is supposed to continue for a while!!

The amenities here are second to none and we were taken care of the second we got off the plane. We were then taken by our personal athlete shuttle to a friend's house we were invited to stay at prior to the event.  It is always amazing to have support from Canadians abroad and Norway is definitely special.  There are many expats as well as Canadian related workers in the oil business who are pleased to have us as guests and help us out wherever they can. Thus far we have been wined and dined by various families which helps considering this is the most expensive spot on the FIVB tour! 

We have trained twice thus far, once with Brazilian and French teams and the second with the top Brazilian team who are ranked #1 at these World Championships!! A great team for sure who challenged us in all aspects of the game.  The definitely helped us prepare for our first match tomorrow which will be on center court at 12 against a Chinese team.  The schedule here in Norway is starts with pool play for 6 days and then moves to a single elimination 32 team championship draw.  We are the first game on center court tomorrow and will play one match Sunday as well as Tuesday making it perfect for relaxing and scouting!  I am really looking forward to giving everything I have during the games and making a move forward at this crucial time in my career.  

For those who care to watch our match, you can do so on www.bwin.com and search for Beach Volleyball. They should be televising our midday match tomorrow which will be about 3 in the morning for all you keeners or late nighters in British Columbia!  Our Sunday match will be 11 AM Norwegian time (2 in the morning in BC) and our Tuesday Game will be at 5 PM making it 10 in the morning Tuesday. The World Championship website is http://www.vmstavanger.com

if you care to look at photos and results.

Until the next post!!

Martin