It was a perfect ending for Netherlands at the European Qualifier for the 2023 ANOC World Beach Games on Sunday as the hosts clinched the qualifying spot in Werkendam by beating France in the men\u2019s triples final.<\/p>\n
Although France lost the men\u2019s triples final, it was a memorable tournament for them with their women\u2019s triples team grabbing their qualification spot by winning their semifinal against Netherlands.<\/p>\n
France had also won the mixed team relay on Saturday in an exciting final over Netherlands (80-78), but there was no qualification place on offer, and the relay served as a seeding event for the triples.[vc_single_image image=”11242″ img_size=”large” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]Prior to the start of the European Qualifiers, Germany and Denmark had already qualified (in both men\u2019s and women\u2019s triples) by virtue of their place in the World Team Ranking list of 3 January 2023. The men\u2019s triples saw the upset of both these teams in the semifinals, with Netherlands getting the better of Germany 3-2 and France taking down Denmark 3-1. The final became a shootout for the qualification place; Netherlands were too strong for their opponents, with the team of Gijs Duijs, Russell Muns and Wessel Van Der Aar beating Dimitri Jacquart, Corentin Lecerf and Thomas Vallez in straight games, 11-4 11-5 11-6 in 25 minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe decided on an attacking approach, and we also used the direction of the wind. We hit the shuttle to the right, and the wind was kicking in from the left, and they had some trouble with that,\u201d said Gijs Duijs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m feeling really great. I had some doubts if we could manage, but after the semifinal, we were really tired, so we\u2019re happy that we won 3-0.\u201d<\/p>\n
In women\u2019s triples, Germany and France qualified for the semifinals from Group A and Netherlands and Denmark from Group B. The Denmark versus Germany semifinal was a close affair, with Denmark prevailing 3-2 to make the final.<\/p>\n
The France versus Netherlands semifinal was an all-important contest for the qualification spot; France shot down the hopes of the hosts with a 3-1 score.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe decided to direct the shuttle towards the middle of the court, and we managed to play with the wind and managed to control the game,\u201d said Lorraine Baumann.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are all happy to win this game because it was our goal to go to Bali, so mentally we stayed focussed and we knew what we wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n
The women\u2019s triples final was another exciting contest, and the Danish team of Irina Amalie Andersen, Iben Bergstein and Anne Fuglsang edged the French (Lorraine Baumann, Ophelia Casier and Charlotte Ganci) 11-13 11-9 4-11 11-9 11-9 in 42 minutes.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”11243″ img_size=”large” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]Overall, the European Qualifier \u2013 organised by Badminton Nederland in collaboration with BWF \u2013 was another big step in the evolution of AirBadminton. Eight teams \u2013 Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Netherlands and Switzerland \u2013 played the mixed team relay event, while men\u2019s triples had 10 teams and women\u2019s triples had eight teams in the competition. With a great outdoor venue providing the perfect setting, the event showcased several exciting contests, setting the tone for the ANOC World Beach Games in Bali this August.<\/p>\n