The junior beach volleyball players from Lower Austria celebrated impressive successes at the recent Austrian Championships in the U15 to U21 age categories. With 20 out of 48 possible medals, they dominated the competition and thus reinforced the top position of this region in the national youth sector.
“Congratulations to our successful beach volleyball youth. With their outstanding performances, our local talents have impressively shown what can be achieved with ambition, hard training, and passion. These successes will certainly continue to drive the positive development of volleyball sports in our state. In order to celebrate such great successes in the future, we want to provide optimal training and education opportunities for young athletes in accordance with our Sports Strategy 2025, so that they can continue to pursue the rocky path to the podium and the top,” congratulated Deputy Governor Landbauer.
The Austrian Championships for U15 and U17 were held at the newly built beach volleyball facility in the Sports Center Lower Austria in St. Pölten. Organized by the Volleyball Academy Lower Austria, these competitions provided an ideal platform for the young talents from Lower Austria, who were able to take full advantage of their home advantage. In the U15 girls’ competition, Helena Ferstl-Schmid (NÖ), together with her Carinthian partner Helena Bleyer, became the Austrian champion. Also on the podium were the Waldviertel athletes Mia Paumann and Zoe Dürnitzhofer, who won bronze.
In the U17 girls’ competition, the teams from Lower Austria also proved their class. Anja Hofstetter and Oleksandra Shkarupa (NÖ) won a dramatic final over three sets against Lilli de Meersman and Lotta Lippitsch (NÖ/K) and secured gold. The bronze medal went to Anna Hammarberg and Bettina Scharf (NÖ/ST). In the U17 boys’ competition, Martin Poinstingl and Paul Hohenauer (NÖ) triumphed, claiming yet another title for Lower Austria.
At the Austrian Championships for the U19 and U21 age groups, which took place at the Sports Park Jennersdorf in Burgenland, the teams from Lower Austria also demonstrated their superiority. In the U19 girls’ competition, Lilli De Meersman and Oleksandra Shkarupa (NÖ) won the championship title, while Anna Hammarberg (NÖ) took silver with her Styrian partner Bettina Scharf. In the boys’ category, Julian Kronberger and Simon Dräger (NÖ) achieved a strong third place.
In the U21 competition, sisters Emma and Lilli Hohenauer (NÖ) completed the success by winning the final against Anna Hammarberg and Bettina Scharf (NÖ/ST), thus bringing gold back to Lower Austria once again. Notably, all state championship titles in the youth category for girls went to players from Lower Austria. Bronze in the U21 competition was secured by the U19 state champions Lilli De Meersman and Oleksandra Shkarupa (NÖ).
These extraordinary successes are not only a testament to the high level of performance of the Lower Austrian junior volleyball players but also to the excellent work of the Volleyball Academy Lower Austria. With a dual training program encompassing both indoor and beach volleyball, the academy optimally prepares its talents for national and international challenges. Given these impressive performances, there is much anticipation for the future – the next generation of beach volleyball stars from Lower Austria is already waiting in the wings.
Academy director Marc Demmer adds: “Since we started at the training center in St. Pölten five years ago, we have continually evolved. With the support of Sportland Lower Austria, we have been able to raise the level of performance further. In addition to the great successes at the Austrian Youth Championships, we have also received numerous call-ups internationally and have been able to celebrate successes. The gold medal at the U18 Beach Volleyball European Championships by Lilli Hohenauer this year in Georgia stands out.”
“The facts and figures of the youth successes in indoor and beach volleyball speak for themselves. It is incredible how quickly we have been able to implement our idea of a Lower Austria performance center up to our vision of a volleyball academy with nationwide relevance through consistent work and tireless commitment. Lower Austria has significantly expanded its importance in national and international volleyball sports. Now it is vital to maintain this momentum,” congratulates NÖVV president Thomas Mayer to the young athletes as well as to the many helping and often volunteer staff and coaches who made these successes possible.
Further information: SPORTLAND Lower Austria, Patrick Pfaller, Telephone +43 2742 9000 19876, Mobile +43 676 812 19876, Email [email protected]