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Zara DampneyBritish beach volleyball star
Date of Birth: 10.06.1986
Country:  Great Britain |
Content:
- Zara Dampney: British Beach Volleyball Star
- International Debut and Olympic Qualification
- Sponsorship and London Olympics
- Olympic Debut
Zara Dampney: British Beach Volleyball Star
Early Life and CareerZara Dampney was born on June 10, 1986, in Christchurch, New Zealand. She spent her childhood in Dorset, England, where she played indoor volleyball at Parkstone Grammar School. After graduating, she attended the University of Sheffield to study law. At age 16, she represented the British National Volleyball team and played for the Wessex Volleyball Club.
International Debut and Olympic Qualification
Dampney made her debut in the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) World Tour in 2009. She and her partner Shauna Mullin achieved a career-best 9th place finish in the tournament. During the competition, Dampney and Mullin garnered attention for selling advertising space on the back of their beachwear, featuring a QR code for the bookmaker 'Betfair'.
Sponsorship and London Olympics
Their performances were also supported by the National Lottery. Dampney and Mullin competed in the London 2012 Olympic qualification tournament, where they won all their matches in the group stage. However, they were defeated in the second round by the eventual tournament winners, Brazil. In the build-up to the Olympics, the duo played an exhibition match on Parliament Square.
Olympic Debut
Dampney and Mullin were selected to represent Great Britain in beach volleyball at the 2012 London Olympics. The matches were held at Horse Guards Parade in Central London, outside the Prime Minister's residence. They became the first British pair to compete in the sport at the Olympics. At the time of their Olympic debut, the Dampney-Mullin duo was ranked 37th in the world.
