Top three women's seeds dominate Marseille podium spots

(BEIJING, July 21) -- German pair Stephanie Pohl and Okka Rau won gold in the final of the beach volleyball open in Marseille. It is the first time that a German team has won a gold medal on the FIVB World Tour. Pohl was named as the player of the tournament.

The Germans beat Maria Antonelli and Vanilda Leao of Brazil 21-17, 22-20, 15-9. In the bronze medal match, Brazilian sisters Maria Clara and Carolina Salgado did not drop a set against Helke Claasen and Antje Roder of Germany, beating the German pair 21-17, 25-23.

Pohl and Rau's strong performance in Marseille ensured their spot in the beach volleyball tournament at Beijing 2008. They finished fifth at Athens 2004. When the first set was tied at 16-16, the Germans scored four consecutive points and won 21-17. The Germans led in the second set 17-13, but Antonelli and Leao came back with a 6-1 run and nailed the set 22-20.

Pohl and Rau had already won five three-set matches during the tournament. In the third set, the third-seeded Germans took an early lead of 5-2 and extended the margin to 11-5. Rau, who is an experienced back-row defender, blocked and the Germans won the deciding set 15-9. The gold medal was the 11th time that a German team has won a medal, with three of those belonging to Pohl and Rau.

The silver medal was Antonelli and Leao's first medal on the FIVB World Tour. They recovered from a first round loss and won seven straight matches.

The Salgado sisters won their third bronze medal. Claasen and Roder were the third consecutive German team that the Brazilians have played.

"We were a bit tired after the match we had yesterday, but we tried to be relaxed," Maria Clara said. "Today we were really focused. Our goal is to be better in future tournaments. We are a volleyball family, and we were so distraught about Pedro not making the Olympics."

Pedro is the brother of Maria Clara and Carolina Salgado. Pedro and Harley Marques can no longer qualify for the Olympics after they were beaten in the men's semifinal by their compatriots Fabio Luiz Magalhas and Marcio Araujo.