Japanese duo Ren and Non Matsumoto, backed by the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment program, secured their first Beach Pro Tour gold medal by winning the women`s event at the Qidong Futures tournament. Hungary`s Stefania Kun and Lilla Villam took silver, while Brazil`s Quemile Vieira de Souza and Emanuely Pereira Cardoso (Manu) earned bronze. In the men`s competition, England`s Frederick Bialokoz and Issa Batrane, also supported by the program, achieved a bronze medal after starting from the qualifications. The gold went to Belgium`s Kyan Vercauteren and Joppe Van Langendonck, and Brazil`s Mateus Rodrigues (Manaus) and Vilsomar Brito claimed silver.
The Japanese beach volleyball program receives USD 84,000 in coach support through FIVB Volleyball Empowerment, enabling their national teams to train with American coach Steve Anderson. Second seeds Ren and Non had a dominant run to the women`s final in Qidong, winning all their matches in straight sets, including a 2-0 (21-19, 21-16) victory over Quemile and Manu in the semifinals. The final against third seeds Kun and Villam was a tougher challenge, going to three sets before the Japanese pair clinched a close 2-1 (21-19, 26-28, 15-13) win for their inaugural Beach Pro Tour gold. This win follows two previous silver medals at Songkhla Futures events and marks their third consecutive tournament reaching at least the semifinals.
For Villam and her 19-year-old partner Kun, the silver in Qidong represents their first Beach Pro Tour medal. Despite losing their first match, the Hungarian duo bounced back with four consecutive wins, culminating in a 2-1 (19-21, 21-16, 15-8) semifinal victory against Australia`s Caitlin Bettenay and Cassandra Dodd.
The bronze medal match was also a tight contest, with Quemile and Manu defeating Bettenay and Dodd in three sets (21-16, 17-21, 16-14) to secure their second Beach Pro Tour bronze, adding to their medal from the Marica Futures in December.
England Volleyball has received USD 294,000 in FIVB Volleyball Empowerment coach support for its beach volleyball national teams, plus an additional USD 6,000 for coach development. New Zealander Kirk Pitman coaches the English teams. Bialokoz and Batrane`s journey in Qidong began in the qualifications, winning four matches to reach the semifinals. After losing their semifinal, the sixth-seeded English pair secured their sixth Beach Pro Tour medal by winning the bronze match 2-0 (21-18, 21-15) against top seeds Bintang Akbar and Sofyan Rachman Efendi of Indonesia.
The 21-year-old Vercauteren and 22-year-old Van Langendonck of Belgium have now won gold medals in all three of their world-level appearances: the 2023 U21 World Championship, the 2024 Bujumbura Futures, and now the Qidong Futures. Like the Japanese women, the seventh-seeded Belgians reached the final without dropping a set, including a 2-0 (21-10, 21-15) semifinal win over Bialokoz and Batrane. They secured gold with a 2-1 (21-16, 18-21, 15-6) victory over Manaus and Vilso in the final.
The Brazilian pair Manaus and Vilso reached the final after a 2-1 (21-13, 17-21, 15-13) upset win against Bintang and Sofyan in their semifinal. Just a week prior in Qingdao, Manaus and Vilso had won gold after also coming through the qualifications. Their silver medal in Qidong, again starting from qualifications as 13th seeds, means they have reached the final in both of their Beach Pro Tour appearances.
The Qidong Futures tournament featured 21 men`s teams and 16 women`s teams from 14 countries. The next Futures event is a women`s tournament scheduled for Geneva, Switzerland, from June 26 to 29.
Oliver Wrenwick 
Finley Blackwood