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Laman Ismayilova

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Azerrail men's and women's have returned home after winning Beach Volley European Cup 2024 held in Montpellier, France, Azernews reports.

The athletes were welcomed by representatives of the Azerbaijan Volleyball Federation, media members, fans, and the athletes' relatives.

In a tournament where 16 clubs competed, the Azerrail teams emerged victorious against all their opponents.

The women's volleyball team defeated Austria's "Bergstrand" and Slovenia's "BVC Ludus" in the group stage, then in the quarter-finals overcame Turkiye's "Spor Lisesi Ihtisas Kulübü," and in the semi-finals triumphed over Hungary's "Edra Tata," continuing their winning streak into the final.

In the decisive round, the team faced Ukraine's "Sunrise Beach Sports Academy."

After a tense match, they triumphed over their opponent with a score of 15:12, thus becoming the winners of the European Cup.

The men's team also had a stellar performance, defeating France's "Re Beach" and Slovenia's "BVC Ludus" in the group stage, followed by a quarter-final win against Ukraine's "Sunrise Beach Sports Academy," a semi-final victory over France's "Montpellier Beach Volley," and finally overcoming Spain's "CVP Poniente Benidorm Alicante" in the decisive match, finishing the tournament in first place.

Note that Azerrail is a four-time champion of Azerbaijan Superleague and the winner of CEV Cup in 2002 and Challenge Cup in 2011.

Founded in 2001, Azerrail soon established itself as one of the top clubs in Europe under the management of head coach Faig Garayev.

In 2002, Azerrail won CEV Cup after bathing OK Jedinstvo Uzice in the final and also became the base club for the Azerbaijan national team, producing players such Natalya Mammadova, Valeriya Mammadova, Oksana Kurt, Yelena Parkhomenko and Polina Rahimova.

The team continued to compete in European tournaments in the 2000s and 2010s.

In 2011, Azerrail won the CEV Women's Challenge Cup after beating Lokomotiv Baku in the all Azerbaijani final.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr

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