BEACH VOLLEYBALL: Australia has won double gold at the Yogyakarta Open beach volleyball tournament in Indonesia, winning both the men’s and women’s finals.

Former world U23 champions, Nicole Laird and Mariafe Artacho del Solar, beat China 2-0, while in the men’s, Bo Soderberg and Cole Durant, in just their second tournament together, beat the local Indonesian favourites, also in straight sets.

Another new pairing, 2012 Olympian Becchara Palmer and Queensland’s Jordan Mowen, lost the bronze medal play-off against Thailand in three sets.

The win for both Australian teams will serve as a confidence boost ahead of next year’s Asian Olympic qualifiers, which will be contested in Australia.

Australia’s top ranked female team, Louise Bawden and Taliqua Clancy, are in a strong position to qualify directly for the Rio Games after scoring well throughout the season. That would leave the door open for a second Australian team to qualify through the continental play-offs.

Australia’s top ranked men’s team, Isaac Kapa and Chris McHugh, are struggling to accrue the points to guarantee an Olympic start, and may have to rely on qualifying through the continental qualifiers.

Soderberg and Durant also have Olympic aspirations, despite their inexperience as a team.

38-year-old Soderberg, a former Danish representative, sat out of international volleyball for three years so he could represent Australia.

He teamed up with Perth’s Durant to compete at the Rio Open last month, with Yogyakarta their second tournament together.

ROSS SOLLY FOR VOLLEYBALL AUSTRALIA (modified)