At the recent Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games, held in Duisburg, Switzerland and Germany showcased their dominance in beach volleyball, each securing a prestigious gold medal in the women`s and men`s competitions, respectively.
Women`s Competition Highlights
The Swiss duo of Menia Bentele and Annique Niederhauser emerged victorious in the women`s event. They outperformed their rivals, with the Dutch pair Floor Hogenhout and Nigella Negenman earning the silver medal, and Alexis Durish and Audrey Koenig from the United States claiming the bronze.
Bentele and Niederhauser, seeded third, demonstrated remarkable consistency throughout the tournament, securing seven consecutive wins without a single defeat. Their path to the gold medal included a challenging semifinal comeback, where they narrowly defeated Poland`s Malgorzata Ciezkowska and Urszula Lunio (second seeds) 2-1 (16-21, 21-18, 15-11). In a thrilling final showdown, the Swiss pair triumphed over the 12th-seeded Dutch team of Hogenhout and Negenman with a score of 2-1 (21-18, 19-21, 15-5).
The Dutch silver medalists also had an impressive run, reaching the final unbeaten in their six preceding games. They secured their spot in the gold medal match with a tight 2-1 (21-15, 14-21, 16-14) semifinal win against the American duo. Durish and Koenig then rebounded effectively to clinch the bronze medal, sweeping Ciezkowska and Lunio 2-0 (21-16, 21-10) in the third-place playoff.
Men`s Competition Highlights
In the men`s tournament, the German home favorites, Philipp Huster and Maximilian Just, delighted their supporters by claiming the gold medal. The silver medal went to the Dutch team of Quinten Groenewold and Tom Sonneville, while the French pair, Elouan Chouikh-Barbez and Joadel Gardoque, completed the podium with a bronze.
Huster and Just, the top-seeded pair, mirrored the women`s champions` performance by remaining undefeated throughout the tournament with seven consecutive victories. In their semifinal match, the German duo recovered from an initial set deficit to defeat the 14th-seeded Italians Riccardo Iervolino and Filippo Mancini 2-1 (19-21, 21-18, 15-12). The gold medal match saw Huster and Just deliver a commanding 2-0 (21-13, 21-12) victory over Groenewold and Sonneville.
The seventh-seeded Dutchmen, Groenewold and Sonneville, earned their place in the final with a decisive 2-0 (21-17, 21-18) semifinal sweep against Chouikh and Gardoque. The French pair, however, bounced back strongly to secure the bronze medal, overcoming Iervolino and Mancini 2-0 (22-20, 21-18) in the third-place encounter.
Tournament Overview
The beach volleyball events at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games in Duisburg attracted significant international participation, featuring 24 women’s teams and 24 men’s teams from a total of 30 different countries, underscoring the global appeal and competitive spirit of university sports.
Jasper Thornfield 
Finley Blackwood