At the recent BVA U20 Beach Volleyball Balkan Championships held in Marathon, Greece and Moldova, both supported by the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment initiative, secured half of the available medals. Greece, as the host nation, won gold in the women`s category with the duo of Eleni Alexoglou and Myrto Paschalaki. Moldova`s teams also performed strongly, with Daria Usatova and Valeria Gherman earning women`s bronze, and Daniil Didorciuc and Alexei Usatov securing men`s bronze. Other medalists included Bulgaria`s Zahari Zgurov and Georgi Antov, who won gold in the men`s event, and Türkiye`s pairs Tuna Imdat & Baris Gudali (men`s silver) and Su Simdim & Bahar Dogan (women`s silver).
The success of these nations is partly attributed to the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment program. The Greek beach volleyball federation has received a substantial USD 262,500 for coaching support, benefiting their national pairs under coaches Konstantinos Pothitakis and Efstathios Chandrinos. Moldova`s beach volleyball teams have also received a USD 42,000 grant for coach support, with their national teams being guided by Bulgarian coach Vladimir Orlov.
Women`s Tournament Highlights
The Greek women`s gold medalists, Eleni Alexoglou and Myrto Paschalaki, dominated the U20 Beach Volleyball Balkan Championship. They advanced through all five matches without losing a single set. Their path to gold included an all-Greek semifinal victory (2-0, 21-7, 21-18) against Aikaterini Liofti and Kyriaki Koukouditska, followed by a decisive 2-0 (21-19, 21-14) win in the final against Türkiye’s Su Simdim and Bahar Dogan.
Türkiye’s Simdim and Dogan defeated Moldova`s Daria Usatova and Valeria Gherman 2-0 (21-16, 21-8) in their semifinal. However, the Moldovan pair rebounded impressively in the bronze medal match, securing a hard-fought 2-0 (22-20, 21-19) win against Liofti and Koukouditska to claim their medal.
Full women`s results and standings were also available for the championship.
Men`s Tournament Highlights
In the men`s competition, Moldova`s Daniil Didorciuc and Alexei Usatov finished as pool runners-up. They were defeated in the semifinal by the eventual champions, Zahari Zgurov and Georgi Antov of Bulgaria. Despite the setback, Didorciuc and Usatov successfully bounced back, clinching the bronze medal with a decisive 2-0 (21-19, 21-15) victory over Türkiye’s Nevzat Kaan Erol and Polat Kemal Eser.
Bulgaria`s Zgurov and Antov had a strong run, topping their pool without losing a set. Their path to the Balkan title, however, involved two intense tie-breakers. They first overcame Moldova`s Didorciuc and Usatov in a challenging semifinal, winning 2-1 (18-21, 21-16, 15-12). In a thrilling gold medal match, the Bulgarian duo secured a narrow 2-1 (21-19, 22-24, 17-15) victory against Türkiye’s Tuna Imdat and Baris Gudali.
In the other men`s semifinal, an all-Turkish affair, Imdat and Baris defeated Erol and Polat Kemal Eser with a comfortable 2-0 (21-9, 21-15) score.
Full men`s results and standings were also available for the championship.
The BVA U20 Beach Volleyball Balkan Championships in Marathon featured a total of sixteen teams – eight women`s and eight men`s – representing Bulgaria, Greece, Kosovo, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, and Türkiye.
Oliver Wrenwick 
Finley Blackwood