Pļaviņš and Rot Take Third at 'King of the Court' Tournament in Hamburg

Latvian beach volleyball player Mārtiņš Pļaviņš, playing alongside Frenchman Teo Rot, claimed third place at the 'King of the Court' tournament in Hamburg on Sunday.

In the final, the duo took second place in the first round with 11 points, won the second round with nine points, and finished third in the decisive third round — a showdown among the top three pairs — with seven points.

The tournament was won by Dutchman Stefan Boermans and Brazilian George Wanderley, who accumulated 14 points overall. Second place, also with 14 points but reached later, went to Dutchman Matthew Immers and Swede Jonatan Hellvig.

Road to the final

In preliminary play, Pļaviņš/Rot won the third round of Group C with 20 points, securing a semifinal spot. Another Latvian pair also advanced to the semifinals — Kristiāns Fokerots, partnered with Frenchman Arthur Canet, who scored 24 points in the third round of Group B.

Both Latvian duos ended up in the same semifinal group, Group A. Fokerots/Canet finished last in the first round, while Pļaviņš/Rot finished last in the second round. The two pairs then had to compete against each other in a play-off round for the single remaining spot in the final, which Pļaviņš/Rot won with 12 points; Fokerots/Canet finished second with 10 points.

In the women's competition, Latvia's Anastasija Samoilova, paired with Wies Beckhaus, failed to reach the semifinals, placing second in the third round of Group C on Friday.

In the 'King of the Court' format, pairs play 15-minute matches, with one side of the court designated the 'king's' side — the pair on that side receives serve, giving them a slight advantage. The losing pair of each rally leaves the court to be replaced by the next pair in line, while the winners continue playing on the king's side until they lose a point. After each round, the pair or pairs with the fewest points are eliminated from the tournament.