NEVZA Beach England day three round-up - Norway at the double in the Bridlington sun 

Played in glorious sunshine on Bridlington's Belvedere Beach, first Julia Thelle and Melina Mol secured top spot on the podium in the women's competition, without dropping a set. 

That was followed by another impressive victory for Jonah and Sebastian Kjemperud, albeit their route to success proved to be much tougher. 

Thelle and Mol, sister of 2020 Olympic champion Anders, met number one seeds and home favourites Kirsty Star and Katie Keefe in their final match-up, but quickly showed they were up for the fight. 

Indeed, the Norwegians were soon ahead in the first set and kept the momentum to take it 21-14 with some clever shot making. 

And while the second set was closer, with Keefe, as always, strong at the net, it was Thelle and Mol who saw out the match at 21-17 to seal the title in style. 

"I think the key thing for us was just to stay calm and make sure that we were able to side out and it worked out well for us," said Mol, who won the NEVZA U20 title in Bridlington last year. 

Although decided in two, the men's final was keenly-contested throughout and a thrilling watch for spectators. 

England's reigning champions, Enrique Bello and Niko Gleed, led for much of the first set but a run by the Kjemperuds at the business end of the set turned the tide in their favour and saw them take it 21-17. 

The second was nip and tuck all the way through, but with the Norwegian pair just kept their noses in front. 

However, Bello and Gleed simply refused to give in, saving no less than eight match points before the Scandinavian duo finally sealed the title. 

It was a triumphant return for the brothers who finished third last year, beating the team they lost to in last year's semi-final, and follows their maiden Beach Pro Tour triumph in China in May. 

Sebastian Kjemperud said: "It was an amazing to win and to be here with my brother to do it makes it even more special." 

The women's bronze medal match between Sweden's Juste Derkintyte and Ellen Lindqvist and Finland's Sara Sinisalo and Maisa Kyröläinen saw some powerful serving and plenty of aces as a result. 

But it was the latter team which emerged victorious as they showed the greater level of consistency to prevail by a 21-17, 21-17 margin. 

It was another battle between Norway and England in the men's bronze medal match and – once again – it was the visiting nation who prevailed. 

Teenagers Lewis Bunton and Bailey Harsum had done tremendously well to reach the latter stages of the tournament and hit back from a set down to level against Marius Pande and Magnus Helregud. 

But in a gruelling three setter, the English duo could not maintain their level in the deciding set and missed out on a place on the podium, with the Norwegians taking it 21-15, 17-21, 15-9. 

Earlier the men's semi-finals had produced some entertaining matches in perfect conditions. 

It was the Kjemperud brothers who had clinched their final place first, overcoming Bunton and Harsum in straight sets. 

The pivotal exchanges of the match proved to be the closing moments of the first set where the English duo saved no less than six set points and also had one of their own, but Norway kept their cool to eventually edge it 28-26. 

The Kjemperuds took control early in the second set, as Bunton and Harsum appeared a little deflated, and never let go, closing out the match 21-14. 

In the other men's semi, Bello and Gleed came flying out of the blocks and stormed through the first set 21-10. 

Norwegians Pande and Helgerud were much more competitive in the second set, but the English pair used their past experience of playing in the Bridlington sand to good effect to wrap things up with a 21-16 second set success. 

The women's Last 4 matches were also decided in straight sets as, just like the men's, teams from Norway and England made their way through to the final. 

First, Mol and Thelle underlined their credentials with a 21-16, 21-13 victory over Finland's Sinisalo and Kyröläinen, where they encountered few alarms. 

The second semi-final was closer, but the hosts' Star, with some powerful spiking, and Keefe, with some big blocking, came through a tight first set and then ran away with the early stages of the second to win 21-19, 21-16 against Derkintyte and Lindqvist of Sweden. 

Volleyball England would like to thank partners East Riding of Yorkshire Council and Skyball Beach Volleyball Club for their support during the event, as well as the army of volunteers and officials who have helped make the event a success. 

Don't forget to follow coverage of the UK's first-ever Beach Pro Tour Futures Bridlington event from Thursday to Sunday, again from Bridlington's Belvedere Beach. 

You can come down and watch the world-class action for free, or follow matches live on the Volleyball England YouTube Channel.  

Images by Simon Clarke