World No.1 beach volleyball duo Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan clinched Qatar’s third Tokyo 2020 medal when they outplayed their Latvian counterparts 21-12, 21-18 for a bronze in third place play-off.
By winning the bronze medal with a straight-set win over Martins Plavins and Edgar Tocs at Shiokaze Park overlooking the Tokyo Bay, Cherif and Tijan also went on to create history by becoming the first team in the Middle East to win a medal in beach volleyball.
“It was hard work, patience and discipline. We knew that we had the potential. What we were focused on was how to express those feelings, how to play better year by year. So every year we were trying to evaluate the mistakes we made in the last year. I think so far we are doing great,” Cherif told Volleyball World after yesterday’s win.
“It was not an easy process. It’s a long process. It didn’t start now. It started in 2012. Mentally and physically, it was not easy. It took us maybe six or seven years to build this team. But we trust the process. For sure, the road is going to be very difficult; there will be some ups and downs. But we didn’t give up and we’re thankful to be here,” Cherif, who scored the winning point over block attempt, said.
The Latvians were targeting their second Bronze at Olympics, but for them the World No.1 pair were too difficult to handle.
SOURCE – https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/07/08/2021/Qatar-s-Cherif,-Tijan-clinch-bronze
