World champs Cheng and Hughes top the Ostrava Beach Pro Tour event

June 9, 2024.- Reigning world champions Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes of the United States won the Ostrava Elite 16 Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour title on Sunday in Czechia.

The women’s tournament in Ostrava saw the return of world champions Cheng and Hughes to the top of the podium for the first time since their victory at last year’s FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championship, last October. To do that, the Americans downed Canadians Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson 2-1 (21-13, 21-23, 15-12) in the gold medal match.

Ostrava Elite16 – Final Results

It was the sixth international and ninth overall victory of the two since they joined forces for the second time in their careers, at the end of 2022. It was also the second title of the 28-year-old Cheng in Ostrava, where she had won in 2021 with former partner Sarah Sponcil.

“Kelly and I just wanted to play together,” Hughes explained. “We just focused on our side of the net because they’re an incredible team. We knew we just had to do what it took to put the ball away and we did that. The fans here in Ostrava are among the best we ever played for, so I’d just like to thank them too.”

In the men’s field, Americans Andy Benesh and Miles Partain secured their best result of the season so far in Ostrava, beating Olympic champions Anders Mol and Christian Sørum of Norway, who were returning to international competition after three months of absence, 2-0 (21-15, 21-14) in the bronze medal match.

The next two weeks in international beach volleyball will be dedicated to the Continental Olympic Qualifiers, with each of the five continental Confederations holding their events.

The Beach Pro Tour will have its next Elite16 event in Gstaad, Switzerland, from July 3-7.