The 2025 Eastern European Volleyball Zonal Association (EEVZA) U16 Beach Volleyball Championships, hosted by the Latvian Volleyball Federation in Cēsis, concluded on Friday. Home favourites Milana Tīna Aleksejeva and Karlīna Bērziņa secured the girls` title, while Tautvydas Galubickas and Rokas Lukoševičius from Lithuania won the boys` competition.
In the girls` final match, the Latvian pair Aleksejeva and Bērziņa defeated Diana Avramenko and Vira Hudz from Ukraine in a three-set thriller (18-21, 21-16, 17-15).
Milana Tīna Aleksejeva commented on their victory, saying, “This tournament was quite tough, as we had just competed in the EEVZA U18 Championship, and fatigue was noticeable. Playing multiple three-set matches was unusual and physically demanding. However, we are very proud that we persevered and delivered a strong performance. We see this result positively. We proved to ourselves and others our ability to stay resilient, even under difficult conditions.”
She added, “This victory might not be the most significant of our career, but it is valuable as it earns us additional points in the FIVB and Latvian championship rankings. This will help us secure better positions in future tournaments. This win is a practical gain that benefits us going forward.”
In the match for third place, Natalia Lewandowska and Hanna Lesniewicz from Poland defeated the Latvian duo Anna Kovaļova and Marija Dārta Jaundžeikare in three sets (21-17, 17-21, 15-9).
In the semifinals, Avramenko and Hudz beat Kovaļova and Jaundžeikare 2-0 (24-22, 21-18), while Aleksejeva and Bērziņa overcame the Polish pair 2-1 (21-13, 15-21, 15-12).
In the boys` final, the Lithuanian team Tautvydas Galubickas and Rokas Lukoševičius triumphed over Wojciech Witkowski and Antoni Czarnecki from Poland in straight sets (21-13, 21-15).
The bronze medal match featured another Polish duo, Hubert Ziajka and Karol Lunio, who defeated Marten Heinlaid and Jan Erik Praks from Estonia 2-0 (21-14, 22-20). The top Latvian boys` team, Ralfs Linga and Edvards Miķelsons, were eliminated in the quarterfinals by their Estonian opponents.
In the semifinals, Galubickas and Lukoševičius beat Heinlaid and Praks 2-0 (21-18, 21-19), while Witkowski and Czarnecki won a close match against their compatriots Ziajka and Lunio 2-1 (21-19, 12-21, 15-11).
Teams from five countries participated in the EEVZA U16 Championships: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine.
Earlier in the week, on Wednesday, Cēsis also hosted the conclusion of the EEVZA U18 Championships. In the boys` final, Estonia`s Armin Kender and Patrik Parijõgi defeated Latvian top seeds Tomass Silavs and Bruno Liepiņš 2-0 (21-13, 21-14). In the girls` final, the Latvian pair Monika Mamaja and Alise Aleksāne won 2-0 (21-13, 21-18) against Marta-Mia Ploomipuu and Hannemai Hanimägi from Estonia. All four finalist teams from the U18 event qualified for the CEV U18 Beach Volleyball European Championships scheduled for September 11-15 in Corigliano Rossano, Italy.
