Jacob Hölting Nilsson/Elmer Andersson and Cherif Younousse/Ahmed Tijan are set to compete for the gold medal in the Swiss Alps on Sunday at the Gstaad Elite16.
While reigning champions David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig are absent from this week`s Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Gstaad Elite event, Sweden is guaranteed a spot in Sunday`s men’s gold medal match.
Current U22 European champions, Jacob Hölting Nilsson and Elmer Andersson, have extended their winning streak to four consecutive days in Gstaad. They are now scheduled to face the seasoned Qatari Olympic medalists Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan in the event’s final, set for 15:00 local time (13:00 GMT). The bronze medal match, featuring Brazilians André Loyola/George Wanderley and Dutch pair Stefan Boermans/Yorick de Groot, will precede the final by two hours.
On Sunday, the young Swedes will aim to cap off their remarkable Gstaad campaign with their first ever gold in a Beach Pro Tour Elite event. Hölting Nilsson, 20, and Andersson, 19, began their tournament journey in Wednesday`s qualifier and have won six out of their seven matches en route to the final.
Their impressive run included victories over both teams representing Brazil at last year’s Paris Olympics on Saturday. They first swept Evandro Gonçalves and Arthur Lanci 2-0 (21-16, 21-19) in the quarterfinals, followed by another straight-sets win against André and George (21-15, 21-18) in the semifinals.
“We definitely didn’t expect to make it this far here in Gstaad this week,” Andersson commented. “Last week we were playing in Poland (at the Warmia Mazury Challenge) and we weren’t even sure if we were going to be able to play here because we were on the reserve list. This is very unexpected and very fun.”
Since joining the Beach Pro Tour in 2024, the Swedish duo has already secured five medals: gold at the Rakvere, Chennai, and Nuvali Challenges in 2024, gold at the Malmö Futures in 2025, and bronze at the Brno Futures in 2024.
Qataris Return to Gstaad Final
Their opponents, the 30-year-olds Cherif and Ahmed, are seeking their first Gstaad title after earning silver in 2021. This week marks only their third tournament of the season. They previously won gold at the Xiamen Challenge in May.
With four wins from five matches in Gstaad, the Qatari veterans overcame two Dutch teams on Saturday to reach the final in the Swiss Alps. In the quarterfinals, they defeated fellow Olympic medalist Alexander Brouwer and partner Steven van de Velde in a tight tie-breaker (22-20, 21-23, 15-13). They then secured their spot in the final by sweeping Boermans and de Groot (21-16, 21-18) in the semifinals – the same team that beat them in the 2021 Gstaad final.
“I think our mindset helped us a lot today,” Cherif stated after their semifinal win. “We knew that today was a day to win or to die, so we gave everything we had in every play, but also tried to enjoy it because we hadn’t been in the final here in Gstaad at this beautiful stadium in a while. But everyone wants the golden cowbells, and the job is not finished, so we need to keep the focus for the final.”
Oliver Wrenwick 
Jasper Thornfield