KISH ISLAND THREE STAR
- Kish Marine Recreation Sports Complex; Kish Island, Iran
- Feb. 20-24, 2018
- Schedule/Results
All four semifinal and podium matches at the Kish Island Three Star were over in just two sets, with just one stanza being a deuce set, that coming in the gold medal match.
In the end, No. 3 seed Mariusz Prudel and Jakub Szalankiewicz of Poland prevailed for the gold medal in just their second FIVB tournament together, following a fifth-place showing at the Hague in January.
The pair bested Germans Alexander Walkenhorst and Sven Winter in the semis before taking out No. 1 seed Martins Plavins and Edgars Tocs of Latvia in the final. The gold medal match was not without drama, however, as the Latvians stopped four Polish match-point tries, before falling 24-22.
“We are really happy and satisfied because we played a very good game against a very good team,” Prudel said. “That match with Plavins/Tocs was a spectacle. It was tough but it had a very nice level.”
Mariusz Prudel – Jakub Szalankiwicz
Plavins/Tocs advanced to play for the gold, topping Austria’s Julian Horl and Tobias Winter.
Walkenhorst and Winter, who began the week in the qualifying rounds, secured the bronze, their best ever finish as a duo, following a ninth-place finish at the Aalsmeer One-Star last year.
Semifinals
Martins Plavins/Edgars Toc (Latvia) def. Julian Horl/Tobias Winter (Austria) 21-15, 21-17
Mariusz Prudel/Jakub Szalankiewicz (Poland) def. Alexander Walkenhorst/Sven Winter (Germany) 21-17, 21-19
Gold Medal Match
Mariusz Prudel/Jakub Szalankiewicz (Poland) def. Martins Plavins/Edgars Toc (Latvia) 21-18, 24-22
Bronze Medal Match
Alexander Walkenhorst/Sven Winter (Germany) def. Julian Horl/Tobias Winter (Austria) 21-18, 21-11
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