Qidong Futures 2025
Japan’s Ren Matsumoto and Non Matsumoto have achieved a significant milestone, securing their first gold medal on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour. This historic win came at the Qidong Futures event. The women`s podium was completed by Stefania Kun & Lilla Villam of Hungary, who took silver, and Quemile Vieira de Souza & Emanuely Pereira Cardoso (Manu) from Brazil, earning bronze.
In the men’s competition, the top honours went to Belgium`s Kyan Vercauteren & Joppe Van Langendonck. Brazilians Mateus Rodrigues (Manaus) & Vilsomar Brito finished as runners-up, while Frederick Bialokoz & Issa Batrane of England claimed the bronze medal.
Japan’s Ren Matsumoto & Non Matsumoto
Women`s Tournament Recap
The second-seeded Japanese duo, Ren & Non, had a dominant run to the women`s final, not dropping a single set in their matches leading up to the gold medal contest. They defeated ninth seeds Quemile & Manu with a convincing 2-0 victory (21-19, 21-16) in the semifinals.
The final against third seeds Kun & Villam proved to be a tougher challenge, extending to a decisive third set. In a closely fought battle, the Japanese pair emerged victorious with a tight 2-1 scoreline (21-19, 26-28, 15-13), sealing their first ever gold on the Beach Pro Tour. This win adds to their previous two silver medals earned at the Songkhla Futures in 2022 and earlier this year. Their performance in Qidong marks their third consecutive tournament reaching at least the semifinals stage.
The silver medal in Qidong is the first Beach Pro Tour medal for the young Hungarian duo Kun & Villam. Despite an initial loss in the tournament, the 19-year-old Villam and her partner Kun mounted an impressive four-match winning streak, including a significant 2-1 semifinal victory (19-21, 21-16, 15-8) over eighth seeds Caitlin Bettenay & Cassandra Dodd from Australia.
The women`s bronze medal match also went the full distance. Quemile & Manu triumphed over Bettenay & Dodd in a hard-fought three-setter (21-16, 17-21, 16-14) to secure their second bronze medal on the Tour, adding to their third-place finish at the Marica Futures in December.
The 2025 Qidong Futures women’s podium
Men`s Tournament Recap
For 21-year-old Vercauteren and 22-year-old Van Langendonck, their victory in Qidong adds a third gold medal to their collection from world-level competitions. They previously won the U21 World Championship title in 2023 and the Bujumbura Futures in 2024. The seventh-seeded Belgian pair showcased strong form throughout the tournament, winning four matches in straight sets, including their 2-0 semifinal win (21-10, 21-15) against Bialokoz & Batrane.
The men`s final against Manaus & Vilso also required three sets, with the Belgians ultimately prevailing 2-1 (21-16, 18-21, 15-6) to claim the gold.
In their semifinal match, the 13th-seeded Brazilian qualifiers Manaus & Vilso pulled off a notable upset, defeating top seeds Bintang Akbar & Sofyan Rachman Efendi of Indonesia 2-1 (21-13, 17-21, 15-13). This follows their gold medal win just a week prior in Qingdao, where they also started from qualifications. Their silver medal in Qidong means they have reached the final in both of their Beach Pro Tour appearances as a team.
England`s Bialokoz & Batrane, seeded sixth, also started their Qidong campaign from the qualification rounds and won four consecutive matches to reach the semifinals. After their loss to the eventual champions, they bounced back convincingly in the third-place match, defeating Bintang & Sofyan 2-0 (21-18, 21-15) to earn their sixth career medal on the Beach Pro Tour.
The Qidong Futures tournament saw participation from 21 men’s teams and 16 women’s teams representing 14 different countries. The next Futures event is scheduled for this week, a women’s tournament taking place in Geneva, Switzerland, from June 26 to 29.
Full results and standings from the Qidong Futures are available.
Jasper Thornfield 
Oliver Wrenwick