Volleyball: Born for the beach

By PETER JESSUP

An off-court liaison between Olympic gold medallist Dain Blanton from the United States and Australian Nicole Sanderson has helped ensure this year's New Zealand Open sports the best field yet.

Blanton, nickname "Daingerzone", has been staying on the Gold Coast, where Sanderson lives and trains, making an early start to his season in what is an Olympic qualifying year.

The 31-year-old is focused on defending his medal at next year's Athens Olympics.

"The standard has been steadily improving and this year I need to stay ahead."

Blanton grew up near Laguna Beach, California. Older brothers took him to see the competition - "we had to spend the night there to get a good seat on the beach" - and he knew straight away it was what he wanted to do.

"Hanging around on the beach, beautiful girls, the party atmosphere. I was hooked."

He has been on the domestic US pro-tour since 1994 and the world pro-circuit since 1997; the unsettling of fancied Brazil on Bondi Beach is his biggest win.

He is no longer with his fellow Sydney gold-winner Eric Fonoimoana and will soon link with a new partner to work up combinations before the world competition and Athens qualifying, which runs from June to September.

Tonight he is with Austrian player Ollie Stamm.

Sanderson also has a new on-court partner after finishing third in the NZ Open last year with transplanted Kiwi Lauren Grocott. Grocott, born in Tauranga but raised from her teens on the Gold Coast, teams with local Marnie Grant. Sanderson, 26, will play with Annette Huygens-Tholen, 37.

A stunning blonde in typical Gold Coast surfie girl style, Sanderson is tipped to join Australia's Sydney gold medal winner Natalie Cook ahead of Athens because Cook's partner Kelli Potthurst, 37, is expected to announce her retirement any day.



She missed the Sydney Games because of a knee reconstruction and this season is her first full tour since. Blanton said they had a great time at exhibition matches on Waiheke and rated the local players highly.

Favoured to beat him and Stamm will be Swiss brothers and defending champs Paul and Martin Lacuiga, the odd couple who do not speak to each other on-court. They both tried different partners after arguing to the point of separation but eventually realised their best chance of international success was together.

"I can't believe we've made it this far," said 28-year-old Martin of his relationship with Paul, 32.

There is no animosity - just total indifference to what the other does off-court. Separate lives. And no speaking, only hand-signals on-court, so there is no chance of disunity.

"At the start of every year I wonder where we will find the motivation to play together again and every year it just comes, I don't know from where, but perhaps because we are both so competitive and we know we have to compete together," said Martin Lacuiga.

Best Kiwi hope is the pairing of Kirk Pitman, a 21-year-old from Kamo, and Haydn Jones, a 28- year-old schoolteacher from Tauranga. They have won two of three tournaments on the domestic tour and were beaten in a close final by Brendan Heath and Mike Peters, both 24, in last weekend's competition at Mt Maunganui. A former champ and Kiwi representative at Sydney, Craig Seuseu, 31, was with Pitman last year but will play with 1990s partner Owen Ranfurly, 35, after taking a season off from international competition.

He said he would be aiming to return to the pro-tour next year but was keen on a sports broadcasting role.

Competition at the ASB Tennis Centre at Stanley St begins at 6pm today with pool play, one side from each of four pools of three to be eliminated.

There is more roundplay tomorrow and finals on Sunday.