Gold! Austrian Duo Triumphs at Beach Volleyball U20 European Championship
Two Austrian women pull off a major coup in Italy. An Austrian duo also secures a medal in the men's competition.
A successful weekend for Austria's young beach volleyball aces!
Lia Berger, daughter of former beach volleyball player Nik Berger, secured the gold medal with her partner Lilli Hohenauer at the U20 European Championship in Italy.
In the final, the Austrians won 2:0 (21:18, 21:11) against Knoblochova/Petrikova from Czechia.
"The final was good, we are very proud of ourselves. In the first set, we didn't quite get into it and made a lot of serving errors. We then closed the gap at the end and played it out. In the second set, almost everything really worked for us. We fought for every ball, everything just clicked," report the European champions.
Next Stop: U22 European Championship in Madrid
For Berger and Hohenauer, it is not their first major success.
In 2025, they secured third place at the U20 European Championship; prior to that, they had already become U18 European Champions.
The next highlight is already coming up. At the U22 European Championship in Madrid, the Austrians aim to prove their skills once again.
Sponer/Hohenauer Also Win a Medal
The men can also celebrate a medal. Alexander Sponer and Paul Hohenauer win bronze.
There's reason for joy in the Berger family not just for Lia; Tim Berger also celebrates a success.
He and Timo Hammarberg prevailed at the MEVZA-Championships in Schladming.
