Liliana Fernandez and Paula Soria make their Games debut with victory over Italy.

New debut with a victory for the Spanish delegation. Liliana Fernandez (Benidorm, 37 years old) and Paula Soria (Orihuela, 31), a beach volleyball pair, won their Olympic debut against the Italians. Marta Menegatti And Valentina Gottardi at 24–22, 9–21 and 16–14.

In a tense match from the start, the Spanish pair started very confidently, with a superb block from Fernandez. Despite this, the Italians soon picked up the pace and took the lead, but the series errors in services This allowed the Valencians to equalize again. Good defense and a few impressive blockades of Soria They did not allow the Italian pair to close the first set, and everything ended in a tie 22-22. The balance could have fallen to either side, but Spain took advantage of the Italians’ mistake and finally won the first round with an advantage. 24-22.

The second set again started with Italy in the lead and they soon took the lead. partial 19-8With all this in mind, Menegatti’s serve was enough to tie the score again (21-9).

A gift that can be sacrificed

Everything was decided in the final set, which began with a very contentious match between the two countries. With the score tied at 12, Fernandez He put Spain ahead with the decisive throw. All that was left was for the team to close the game precise touch and a good serve that the Italian pair were unable to defend.

After winning and at her fourth Olympic Games, Liliana Fernandez said she did not want to retire without seeing her partner compete in Paris. “I am very happy for Paula and me. This is a gift to the victims of the last few years. I didn’t want to retire without experiencing this with Paula.and today we have made this dream come true together,” she said.

In addition, he also wanted to emphasize the level of the Italians and the importance of remaining calm: “Between the second and third sets we talked about calming down and playing our game, and that was the key to turning the match around.“.