The 2025 FIVB Women’s Beach Volleyball World Championships have concluded in Adelaide, Australia—and the Latvia women are your World champs. 

Entering the tournament as the fifth seed, the duo of Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova helped bring the first podium finish for a Central European country in the event, men’s or women’s.

Their historic run was bigger than a gold medal. It was a statement about investment, belief, and paving the way for possibilities in women’s sports.

Fueled by Preparation, Mentality, and Belief

Throughout the tournament, Tina and Anastasija remained relentless. In all eight matches played, they dropped only one set. Heading into the final, they were victorious in 14 consecutive sets, showcasing consistency, discipline, and composure. Tina explained how they have been able to maintain greatness when the pressure is on at a big competition. 

“World Championships is just another tournament. You're fighting for the title, and here we just follow our tactical analysis, our tips from the coach, and try to do our best and be aggressive. That, plus great mental preparation throughout the year, helped,” she said via SEN.

That mindset proved true as they entered the semi-final, which was a showdown with Brazil’s Thamela and Victoria, the top-seeded team. In what became the biggest upset of the tournament, Tina and Anastasija defeated the duo and marked the turning point of the entire event. Even after securing the upset, Tina emphasized that the job is far from finished on VBTV.

“It feels amazing to be in the finals, but nothing has been earned yet. Tomorrow is a very important game, and we're going to try to keep the same focus and fighting mentality and go in to fight, not just enjoy and have fun. We’ll fight for every single point.” 

“World Championships is just another tournament. You're fighting for the title, and here we just follow our tactical analysis, our tips from the coach, and try to do our best and be aggressive. That, plus great mental preparation throughout the year, helped.”

Tina Graudina

The Gold Medal, the Investment, and What It Represents

Following their gold medal win over the United States, all the emotions poured out not just for winning gold, but everything it took to get there.

“Big, big thank you to my partner Tina, to the entire team here and in Latvia and, of course, to our Latvian fans cheering for us. We are just so grateful for this journey, for this victory here... It’s just amazing! We are the luckiest and the happiest persons in the world right now,” Anastasija said after the match via VBTV. 

Her words reflected something deeper than athletic triumph. Latvia’s rise has been shaped not just by talent, but by targeted investment into their future. 

The Volleyball Federation of Latvia (LVF) was allocated approximately $168,000 in Coach Support through the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment Programme to help the technical and tactical growth of their national teams. 

The takeaway? Resources cultivate success.

Latvia’s victory is proof of what can happen when emerging women’s programs receive the resources they deserve. Resources empower women athletes, expand the map of who can compete on the highest level, and provide a model for how to support women’s sports. 

Gold medals are the outcome of a system that believes enough to invest in women athletes.