BEACH VOLLEYBALL: In just their second tournament together Australia’s newest beach volleyball team of Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar have won their second international gold.
The Rio 2016 Olympians defeated Poland’s Kinga Kolosinska and Katarzyna Kociolek in straight sets in the final to claim their first FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour title at the Qinzhou Open in China.
This win comes off the back of winning gold at their first international tournament at the Osaka Open in Japan last weekend.
Artacho del Solar and Clancy went into the Qinzhou Open as fifth seeds and defeated the top seeds and home favouites Wang Fan and Xia Xinyi 29-27, 21-18 in the semi-finals for a shot at the gold medal.
Kolosinska and Kociolek turned out to be the competition's dark horses. Seeded 30th they defeated second seeds Brooke Sweat and Summer Ross of the United States in straight sets to earn their place in the gold medal showdown.
However the Aussie dymanic duo showed their dominance and took the 21-11, 21-10 victory in 28 minutes, attributing their victory to teamwork and mutual trust.