US duo win beach volleyball gold after setback
22/8/2008 17:50
After a setback in the second set, Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers of the
United States squeezed past Marcio Araujo and Fabio Luiz Magalhaes of Brazil in
men's beach volleyball final at the Beijing Olympics today.
The Americans had
to play three sets to win the match. The three sets went 23-21, 17-21 and
15-4.
The Brazilian duo claimed the silver medals.
The Americans trailed
1-6 as the first set began but were able to make up the loss to 10-10. The two
teams then traded points to 19-19 before a spike by Rogers sent the US team to
set point and the Americans led to end the first set 23-21.
In the second
set, the two teams traded points to 15-15 before the Brazilian pair outscored
and got the set point 20-16 and finishing the set 21-17.
The efficiency of
the 2.06-meter Dalhausser at the net left the Brazilians almost no resistance in
the third set and increased the scores of the US duo steadily set as the
Americans claimed the decider 15-4.
"It's the best feeling (to get the gold
medal) in my lifetime, I can't believe it," said Dalhausser after the
match.
"I've won just about every tournament I hoped to win, but this is the
one that has always eluded me," Rogers said.
The American duo said they were
prepared for the difficulties in the match.
"We were prepared for a three-set
match, " Rogers said on the setback of the second set.
"We got off to a slow
start, but once we got it going, we got it going. " said Dalhausser.
Phil
Dalhausser and Todd Rogers, the 2007 world champions, have been widely
considered to be gold favorites.
Dalhausser was FIVB World Tour best blocker
in 2006 and 2007 and best hitter in 2007 while his partner Rogers was best FIVB
World Tour defensive player in 2006 and 2007. They were also placed first on the
Olympic qualification ranking.
The two said they were partnership was
perfect.
"We're not just great on the court, we're great off the court. In
the first set we came back after being down 6-1. That's a testament to the way
he is, and the way I am." said Dalhausser.
Araujo said they were sad about
the result but the US duo deserved the victory.
"It's hard to find words than
can console us. We couldn't do it now, maybe next time," he said.
"The
covered the court well, especially during the crucial moment in the third set.
We have to keep our heads up and reflect on our mistakes."
"They were better
than us, especially Dalhausser's block. I gave my best today, but things didn't
come out the way I expected, and I'm not going to settle for second place in the
future," Magalhaes said.
In the bronze medal match earlier today, Brazil's
Emanuel Rego and Ricardo Santos defeated Gerogian pair Renato Gomes and Jorge
Terceiro in straight sets(21-15 and 21-10) to won bronze medals.
Xinhua
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