Xue Chen & Zhang Xi Net Phuket Thailand Open Beach Volleyball Gold Medal
17-year old Xue Chen (left) and Zhang Xi celebrate a Phuket Thailand Open win
Phuket, Thailand, November 5, 2006 - For the third-time in the last five women’s SWATCH-FIVB World Tour events, a team from China has captured a gold medal as Xue Chen and Zhang Xi scored an upset win over compatriots Tian Jia and Wang Jie to win the US$200,000 Phuket Thailand Open here Sunday afternoon on the Karon Beach centre court.
Seeded third in the 32-team Main Draw competition, Xue Chen and Zhang Xi scored a 21-18 and 21-15 win over second-seeded Tian Jia and Wang Jie in the third All-Chinese finale on the 2006 SWATCH-FIVB World Tour calendar. With the 48-minute gold medal win, Xue Chen and Zhang Xi shared the $32,000 first-place prize while their Chinese rivals split $22,000 for second-place.
“This is a great way to end our FIVB season,” said the 17-year old Xue Chen, who also teamed with Zhang Xi to capture the top SWATCH podium spot at May’s China SWATCH stop where the young Chinese defeated Tian Jia and Wang Jie for the Shanghai crown.
“Tian Jia and Wang Jie had defeated us seventh-straight times since Shanghai, so we are glad to break their streak against us, said the 21-year old Zhang Xi, who was named the Phuket Thailand Open SWATCH most outstanding player. “Since they are a very good team, we have to play a perfect match to defeat them. We did that today.”
“We had a chance to defeat Tian Jia and Wang Jie Friday, but we made some costly errors against them,” Zhang Xi added about her team’s 21-16, 10-21 and 20-18 setback to Tian Jia and Wang Jie in the Phuket Thailand Open quarter-finals. “I think we played our best Beach Volleyball of the season in our last three matches this weekend against the two American teams and our rivals.”
After losing to Tian Jia and Wang Jie Friday, Xue Chen and Zhang Xi rebounded with a wins over teams from the United States Saturday to reach the gold medal match. After eliminating eighth-seeded Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs 25-23 and 21-19, Xue Chen and Zhang Xi posted a 21-18 and 21-18 semi-final victory over reigning Olympic champions Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.
For the Xue Chen, Sunday’s finale also completed the most successful season ever for a player her age in women’s Beach Volleyball history. In becoming the youngest player to win FIVB titles, she and Zhang Xi finished third on the 2006 SWATCH point’s standings (5,120) with $195,200 in winnings, four medals and a 55-23 match mark for 13 events.
Tian Jia and Wang Jie, who also defeated Xue Chen and Zhang Xi for September’s Poland gold medal in Warsaw, were competing in their ninth SWATCH “final four” this season in 13 events. Tian Jia and Wang Jie placed second to Brazil’s Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca in SWATCH points (7,060 to 5,940) with $238,600 in earnings, eight medals and a 60-20 match record.
With the top two spots on the Phuket Thailand Open podium guaranteed, China finished the season with 13 SWATCH women’s podiums, including four gold medals, five silvers and four bronzes. Prior to this season, the Chinese women had combined to claim eight medals (two gold, one silver and five bronze medals) in the previous 14 seasons of women’s international Beach Volleyball competition.
The 15th and final stop on the 2006 women’s SWATCH calendar, the Phuket Thailand Open bronze medal was claimed by top-seeded May-Treanor and Walsh as the Americans defeated fourth-seeded Nila Ann Hakedal and Ingrid Torlen of Norway for the second-time in three days with a 21-15 and 21-13 win in 32 minutes. May-Treanor and Walsh split $16,000 for third-place with the Norwegians sharing $12,000.
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