Laciga brothers miss out on semi-final action

Switzerland's Laciga brothers have missed out on a semi-final place in the latest round of the beach volleyball World Tour in Marseilles.

Paul and Martin Laciga lost both of their fourth-round ties, going down 21-23, 21-23 to the Argentinian duo Baracetti/Conde and 14-21, 19-21 to the Brazilian pairing of Emanuel and Tande.

The Swiss duo had been performing well in Marseilles, sailing through the first three rounds of the main draw.

But the south of France’s famous mistral wind caused a temporary halt to the tournament on Friday, and when play eventually resumed on Saturday the Lacigas seemed unable to find their form.

Defeat in Marseilles means the brothers have so far failed to win a single tournament during this year’s World Tour.

The pair reached the finals of the first four tournaments in the series, which took place in Tenerife, Gstaad, Berlin and Stavanger in Norway, only to lose out on lifting the trophy each time.

At the most recent tournament in Italy, however, the Lacigas suffered a further setback to their title hopes, when they failed for the first time this season to reach the semi-finals.

The Laciga brothers already hold the 1998 and 2000 World Titles and came fifth in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

swissinfo with agencies