Hungarian and German beach volleyball pairs, backed by FIVB Volleyball Empowerment, recently secured silver medals at the Bujumbura Futures event. In the men`s competition, Hungary`s Artur Hajos and Bence Attila Streli claimed second place. On the women`s side, Germany`s Sandra Ferger and Rika Dieckmann also earned silver. The tournament saw Brazil`s Gabriel Zuliani and Nicolas Capretti Schosler take home their first gold medals on the Beach Pro Tour in the men`s division, while Slovenia`s Tajda Lovsin and Ziva Javornik achieved the same feat in the women`s category. Both bronze medals were won by American teams: James Avery Drost and Robert Wyatt Harrison for men, and Jade Race and Katie Lindstrom for women.
The 2025 Bujumbura Futures men’s podium.
The Hungarian Volleyball Federation`s beach volleyball program, which received USD 126,000 in coach support from FIVB for its men`s duos under Polish coach Robert Zuchowski, also benefited from an additional USD 6,000 for a national team coach development program. Artur Hajos and Bence Attila Streli, seeded seventh, demonstrated strong performance on their path to the Bujumbura final. They notably defeated the second-seeded American duo, James Avery Drost and Robert Wyatt Harrison, in a 2-0 (26-24, 21-14) semifinal upset. This secured their second Beach Pro Tour podium appearance as a pair, following their Cervia Futures silver in 2023. Ultimately, after a loss to the Brazilian team of Gabriel Zuliani and Nicolas Capretti Schosler in the final, Hajos and Streli settled for another silver medal.
Brazilian pair Gabriel Zuliani and Nicolas Capretti Schosler, both 23, celebrated a remarkable Beach Pro Tour debut by winning gold. Their journey included an undefeated streak of seven consecutive matches, starting from the qualifications and culminating in their first Tour gold. Despite being seeded 16th in the main draw, Zuliani and Nicolas pulled off several upsets throughout the Bujumbura tournament. They defeated Japan`s third-seeded Takumi Takahashi and Jumpei Ikeda 2-0 (21-11, 21-17) in the semifinals, and went on to secure a 2-0 (21-15, 21-14) victory over the Hungarian team in the final.
In the men`s bronze medal match, James Avery Drost and Robert Wyatt Harrison of the USA achieved a decisive 2-0 (21-15, 21-12) sweep against Japan`s Takahashi and Ikeda, marking a bronze medal finish in their first Beach Pro Tour appearance as a team.
The 2025 Bujumbura Futures women’s podium.
The German Volleyball Federation`s beach volleyball department has also benefited significantly from FIVB Volleyball Empowerment, receiving a total of USD 168,000 in coach support. Their national teams train under the guidance of Christoph Dieckmann, a former European champion and two-time Olympian. Sandra Ferger and Rika Dieckmann of Germany, seeded ninth in the women`s main draw in Bujumbura, reached the final undefeated, winning four straight-set matches. This achievement guaranteed them their inaugural Beach Pro Tour podium finish. In the semifinals, 34-year-old Ferger, making her Tour debut in Burundi, and coach Dieckmann`s 16-year-old niece Rika, on her second Tour appearance, secured a 2-0 (21-11, 21-15) victory over USA`s Jade Race and Katie Lindstrom. They eventually lost to Tajda Lovsin and Ziva Javornik in the gold medal match.
Slovenian duo Tajda Lovsin and Ziva Javornik also earned their first Beach Pro Tour gold medal. The third-seeded Slovenians advanced to the Bujumbura women`s final without dropping a single set in their three matches. Their flawless run culminated in a dominant 2-0 (21-11, 21-6) semifinal win against Morocco`s second-seeded Mahassine Siad and Dina Mellal. In the gold medal showdown, Lovsin and Javornik did concede one set but ultimately triumphed with a 2-1 (21-10, 17-21, 15-12) victory over the German pair. This marked their second Beach Pro Tour podium, having previously won bronze at the Cervia Futures earlier in the year.
The fourth-seeded American team of Race and Lindstrom, competing together for the first time on the Tour, bounced back in the bronze medal match with a thrilling 2-1 (25-27, 21-12, 16-14) victory over Mahassine and Dina.
A total of 24 men`s teams and 11 women`s teams, representing 16 countries from all five continental confederations, participated in the Bujumbura Futures event.
Upcoming Futures events are scheduled to take place in Budapest, Hungary, and Warsaw, Poland, from September 4 to 7.
