Cherif & Ahmed claim their maiden Gstaad Elite gold
Gstaad (Switzerland)
Qatari Olympic medalists Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan secured their second title in three Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour events this season on Sunday, triumphing at the prestigious Elite tournament held in Gstaad.
The Asians topped the podium at the Swiss Alps for the first time in their careers and had by their sides second-placed Swedish Jacob Holting Nilsson and Elmer Andersson and third-placed Dutch Stefan Boermans and Yorick de Groot.
Cherif and Ahmed prevailed in two close sets (21-19, 22-20) over Nilsson and Andersson, stopping a big late push from the Swedish, who came back from a 20-15 deficit to avoid five matches points and level the score at 20 in the second set before Ahmed scored twice in a row to confirm the Qatari victory.
'They had been playing very well since the tournament started,' Cherif said. 'So we were ready for everything. Their comeback in the second set was crazy, but we knew they were able to do it. There are no easy matches at this level and you need to expect anything.'
Cherif and Ahmed had somewhat of a late start to the 2025 season after taking bronze at last year's Beach Pro Tour Finals, as the two didn't appear in a Beach Pro Tour event until May, when they took gold at the Xiamen Challenge. After that, they played in the Ostrava Elite, in June, finishing fifth.
It took the Qatari Olympians seven attempts to claim the golden cowbells in Gstaad as they first played together in the Swiss village back in 2018.
'We need to thank the fans here in Gstaad,' Cherif added. 'Since 2021, every time we play here, it doesn't matter who's on the other side of the net, they always support us.'
In the bronze medal match, Boermans and de Groot overcame Brazilian Olympians André Loyola and George Wanderley in the tie-breaker (21-23, 21-17, 15-10), finishing third. The Dutch played together in Gstaad for just the second time and had taken gold in the first one, back in 2021.
The bronze cowbells also serve as a birthday present for de Groot, who celebrated his 25th birthday on the sand in the Swiss Alps.
'Of course, I would prefer to play in the final, but to be able to compete on Sunday, on my birthday, it's really special,' de Groot said. 'The venue is incredible here, and to win bronze against a really strong Brazilian team is amazing.'
The next Elite event on the Beach Pro Tour schedule is the one in Montréal, Canada, from August 13-17.
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