Swatch FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Women's Open at Sentosa

It's sunny, it's hot and it's the last day of the Swatch FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Women's Open at Siloso Beach in Sentosa.

2007 is the first year Singapore is hosting the World Tour on its shores as the athletes from all over the world compete for US$200,000 prize money and Olympic qualification points for the 2008 Beijing Games.

So it's not that surprising to see the Chinese making their presence felt, they are the defending champion after all. One of yesterday's semifinal matches featured two teams from China, while the other match has two South American teams fighting for the finals slot. China will be facing Brazil today in the the finals.

The Philippines' Heidi Ilustre and Diane Pascua are in 25th place. Ilustre and Pascua need to earn as many points as they can in at least eight legs of the World Tour this year and in 2008 to be able to make it to Beijing. The Philippine Sports Commission has promised to bring the beach volleybelles to a training camp in Beijing, like some 29 other athletes in the Olympic program.

The SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour is the only intercontinental beach volleyball tour in the world with the best professional athletes from more than 60 countries competing for nearly US$9 million this year.

Tags: beach volleyball, FIVB, Singapore, Sentosa, Philippines, Beijing Olympics, Philippines, Heidi Ilustre, Diane Pascua