USA sweeps men's podium at FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 201

http://www.fivb.org/EN/BeachVolleyball/Competitions/WorldTour/2011/Event/viewPressRelease.asp?No=30654&Language=en

Sweeping the podium for the first time in FIVB history were USA's Nick Lucena/Matt Fuerbringer (silver), Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers (gold) and Jake Gibb/Sean Rosenthal Sunday at the FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 2011.       Quebec City, Canada, July 24, 2011 – Enjoying the benefits of playing fairly close to home in an all-American gold medal match, USA’s Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers had fun in the sun as they beat USA compatriots Matt Fuerbringer/Nick Lucena to grab Sunday afternoon’s internationally-televised men’s gold medal match as the 2011 FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour concluded at the double-elimination $380,000 FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 2011, presented by Videotron. Back in North America for the first time since 2007, the double-gender event marked the eighth time the world tour visited Canada and the first time an event was held in Quebec City. In the all American men’s gold medal match, USA’s top-seeded Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers defeated seventh-seeded countrymen Matt Fuerbringer/Nick Lucena, 23-21, 21-19 in 47 minutes. This was the 12th time in the history of the FIVB Swatch World Tour that there has been an All-American gold medal finale. The last time this happened was in Klagenfurt, Austria, on Aug. 1, 2010 when the same two teams met and Dalhausser/Rogers won that match as well in two sets. Both sets were played very close as the scores indicated with Dalhausser/Rogers getting just enough of an edge to win with Dalhausser blocks and serves and Rogers digs, chop shots and an occasional hard kill. The ninth of 14 men’s and 10th of 15 women’s internationally-televised tournaments on the 2011 FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour schedule, the FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 2011 is running parallel schedules for both genders with the 32-team double elimination main draws which started Thursday ending Sunday. As nearly 5,000 fans filled the sold-out Quebec center court, the winning pairs in each gender share the $30,000 first-place prizes. Silver medal teams will split $21,000, the bronze $15,000 and the fourth place teams will divide $11,200. The venue for the open tournament in Quebec is the provincial I’Externat St-Jean Berchmans and Seminaire des Peres Maristes in the Quebec borough of Sillery. Fuerbringer/Lucena, who were playing in their 18th career FIVB Swatch World Tour event, made their third final four appearance and second gold medal match. They won their second career FIVB silver medal. USA’s Dalhausser/Rogers, who finished a perfect 6-0 in Quebec, were playing their 46th FIVB Swatch World Tour event together and had in their 35th final four finish and played in their 26th career FIVB gold medal match.  As a team, Dalhausser/Rogers have now won 20 FIVB gold medals. In winning their third gold medal of the 2011 FIVB Swatch World Tour season, Dalhausser/Rogers also increased their all-time career FIVB record against Fuerbringer/Lucena to 5-0. Dalhauser/Rogers also increased their 2011 FIVB Swatch World Tour won-loss record to 45-10 with their six wins in Quebec. “Phil’s blocking, especially at the end of both sets is really what put us over the top and won the match for us,” commented Rogers following the gold medal finale.  “Matt and Nick are a very good team and when they are on, like I said yesterday, they can beat anyone in the world, just not this Sunday. The organization of this event in Quebec may just be the best ever first-time event in FIVB history.  Phil and I are honored and humbled to also have been part of the first American sweep of an FIVB podium.  A great week and a super gold medal and now it’s back to work in Europe with two more FIVB grand slams in Poland and Austria. But we will enjoying being back on top of the podium for tonight anyway.” In Sunday’s men’s bronze medal match, USA’s fifth-seeded Jake Gibb/Sean Rosenthal pushed through the blazing sun and pro-Brazilian sellout crowd to defeat Brazil’s 29th-seeded Alvaro Filho/Moises Santos, 22-20 and 21-19 in 43 minutes. It was a rematch of Friday’s winner’s bracket third round match that Gibb/Rosenthal also won by near identical scores to Sunday. In their first pairing on Friday, the USA team won, 22-20, 21-15 in 40 minutes. Playing in their 46th world tour event together and finishing in the final four for the eighth time, Gibb/Rosenthal, who finished with a 5-2 record in Quebec, earned their second career FIVB silver medal. Brazil’s Filho/Santos, were playing in their first FIVB Swatch World Tour event together, Filho, just 20, is playing in his first world tour event after winning the silver medal each of the last two years with Vitor Felipe at the FIVB Swatch Junior World Championships for players under 21 years old. With the final four finish by Filho/Santos, Brazil has now advanced at least one team to an FIVB Swatch World Tour final four 248 times. The United States swept the podium Sunday for the first time in the 23-year history of men’s FIVB Swatch World Tour event. The only other time the USA had three teams in the final four was 1991 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The FIVB Swatch World Tour previously had tournaments in Canada in Toronto (three from 1998-2000) and Montreal (four from 2002-2007). A total of 97 teams from 29 countries competed in the FIVB Swatch Québec Open Jeep 2011. The 2011 FIVB Swatch World Tour calendar features 15 women's and 14 men's events, including 12 double-gender tournaments, within all five FIVB confederations plus one special 24-team single-gender women’s test event held August 9-14 at London’s Horse Guards Parade, the venue for beach volleyball at the 2012 London Olympic Games. The 2011 FIVB Swatch World Tour is offering $7.64-million in prize money. Twelve of the tournaments are combined men's and women's events, including the World Championships and all six Grand Slam stops. After the FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 2011, the 2011 FIVB Swatch World Tour returns to Europe for the final two of six 2011 Grand Slam double-gender events: Monday through Sunday in Stare Jablonki, Poland (Mazury Orlen Grand Slam Stare Jablonki 2011) and Klagenfurt, Austria (A1 Grand Slam presented by Volksbank Klagenfurt 2011). The total prize money for each Grand Slam event is $600,000. The FIVB Swatch Quebec Open Jeep 2011 was the 227th women’s event and 266th men’s event on the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour (open, grand slam, Olympic and Goodwill).  The first men’s FIVB Swatch World Tour event was played February 17-22, 1987 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and the first women’s event was played August 14-16, 1992 at Almeria, Spain. While this is the 25th year that the FIVB has sanctioned international pro beach volley events, it is the 23rd year of the men’s and 20th year of the women’s FIVB Swatch World Tour. Also on-site this week in Quebec was a special production crew from IMG, the company that not only produces the live international telecasts of select matches, but also the weekly FIVB Swatch World Tour highlight show that is syndicated throughout the world. For more information on the 2011 FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour, please visit www.fivb.org or visit the event website at www.quebecopenjeep.com.