PARIS, FRANCE, June 20, 2008 - With four teams from the United States advancing to the women’s ‘elite eight” for the US$600,000 Henkel Grand Chelem here Friday, the “big” surprise during the fifth day of SWATCH FIVB World Tour competition was an upset win by Cubans Dalixia Fernandez Grasset and Tamara Larrea Peraza. With a potential quarterfinal match looming between the top two teams from China, the 19-seeded Fernandez Grasset and Larrea Peraza spoiled the possibilities by posting a 21-16 and 21-16 win in 40 minutes over fifth-seeded Chen Xue and Xi Zhang to advance to a quarterfinal match Saturday against sixth-seeded Jia Tian and Jie Wang. It will be the first SWATCH FIVB World Tour match between the two teams since the 2006 season when Tian and Wang winning both meetings. Two-time Olympians for Cuba and 2003 Pan American gold medal winners, Fernandez Grasset and Larrea Peraza will be seeking their first international semi-final berth since placing fourth at the 2005 SWATCH-FIVB World Championships in Berlin where the Cubans were defeated by Tian and Fei Wang for the bronze medal. Being played on the sand courts at Champs de Mars within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower, the American pairs will be playing in the other three “elite eight” matches with three USA teams in the upper half of the Henkel Grand Chelem, including top-seeded Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh. The reigning Olympic and three-time world champions, May-Treanor and Walsh advanced to quarterfinals where they will be challenged by seventh-seeded compatriots Jen Boss and April Ross while fourth-seeded Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs will play fifth-seeded Talita Antunes and Renata Ribeiro of Brazil. Talita and Renata are the only Brazilians left in the women’s competition. Before third-seeded Shelda Bede and Ana Paula Connelly dropped a 21-19, 17-21 and 15-12 decision in 62 minutes to Tian and Wang, Talita and Renata advanced with a 21-17 and 21-18 win over the 14th-seeded Brazilian Salgado sisters (Carolina and Maria Clara) in 40 minutes.
Boss and Ross scored 24-22 and 21-16 win in 49 minutes over 12th-seeded Tamsin Barnett and Natalie Cook of Australia to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinal schedule while Branagh and Youngs posted a 21-17 and 21-15 victory in 36 minutes over 23rd-seeded Cristine "Saka" Santanna and Andrezza "Rtvelo" Martins of Georgia. The winner of the China-Cuba meeting will face the victorious team from a match between 16th-seeded Sara Goller and Laura Ludwig of the Germany and 11th-seeded Tyra Turner and Rachel Wacholder of the United States, who captured the Henkel Grand Chelem bronze medal in 2007. After placing 25th in the Berlin Grand Slam last week, Goller and Ludwig have won four of five matches this week with the German’s only setback being to May-Treanor and Walsh in pool play Thursday. Goller and Ludwig rebounded from the defeat with two elimination wins, including a 21-14, 19-21 and 15-13 victory Friday afternoon in 48 minutes over 31st-seeded Rebekka Kadijk and Merel Mooren of the Netherlands. |
