2016 Olympic Games beach volleyball pools announced - Articles

Article by Corinne Calabro, USA Volleyball: On Saturday from the Gstaad Major, the FIVB announced the pools for the 2016 Olympic Games. The 2016 U.S. Olympic Beach Volleyball Team learned its opponents for pool play matches at the Olympic Games with a large contingent of the Olympic bound teams on hand to watch. The opening round of play will encompass the first six days of competition, which begin on August 6 from Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro. The top six spots for both men and women were determined via the FIVB World Tour rankings, which closed on June 12. The U.S. qualified its four pairs by way of rankings, ensuring all of them a Top 15 seeding. Five berths were rewarded from Continental Cup winners and the World Continental Olympic Qualifier this week for the final available slots, a total of 24 teams in each gender competing. No two teams from one country can be seeded in the same pool. After pool play, the top two teams in the pool will advance to the Round of 16. Of the third-place finishers in each pool, the top two of those six will advance, based on match points, then by set ratio. The four remaining third-ranked teams in each pool will play a two-match lucky loser round (3rd ranked vs 6th ranked; 4th vs 5th), with the winners advancing to the round of 16. The fourth ranked team in each pool will be eliminated. 2000 Sydney Olympic gold medalist Dain Blanton breaks down the 2016 Olympic pools and...

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