Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser of the United States breezed past their rivals in a lop-sided beach volleyball semifinal match at the Beijing Olympics on Wednesday.
The gold favorites topped Renato Gomes/Jorge Terceiro of Georgia in two sets 21-11, 21-13.
The Georgian pair, who surprisingly eliminated fifth-seeded Reinder Mummerdor and Richard Schuil of the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, had hardly any resistance in most of time against the U.S. duo.
"They are so strong a team, I even didn't know how to concentrate on the game," said Terceiro after the match.
The U.S. duo experienced setbacks in the preliminary round and round of 16 match as they sometimes had to come from behind to win a match but as the matches went on, the Americans have also been playing more solid.
They will fight for the gold medal with the winner of another semifinal match between two Brazilians duos, Emanuel Rego/Ricardo Santos and Marcio Araujo/Fabio Magalhaes.
"Both teams are very tough. We played with each of them some 10 times. We will try our best," said Rogers, nicknamed "the Professor".
The U.S. duo are five-time FIVB World Tour gold medalists and in 2007 they won the FIVB World Championships.
Dalhausser was FIVB World Tour best blocker in 2006 and 2007 and best hitter in 2007 while his partner Rogers was best FIVB World Tour defensive player in 2006 and 2007.
The American duo entered the Beijing Olympics with a 21-match winning streak this year. They are also placed first on the Olympic qualification rankings.
(Xinhua News Agency August 20, 2008)