BOSS/ROSS UPDATE

Saturday, Boss and Ross came in third-place by defeating Shelda and Ana Paula 21-14 and 21-18 in 43 minutes in the ConocoPhillips Grand Slam in Stavanger, Norway.

With the win, Boss and Ross reduced their deficit for the second American Olympic berth by 80 points as the pair has 4,240 points for their eight best SWATCH FIVB World Tour finishes since May 2007. Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs, who placed fifth this week, have 4,300 points entering the final two Beijing qualifying events in Moscow and Marseille.

With the Beijing 2008 Olympics starting in less than eight weeks, the ConocoPhillips Grand Slam is the third to last qualifying event for the Summer Games as the process runs through July 20. The SWATCH FIVB World Tour continues this week in Russia for the first stop in Moscow since 1999. After a week off for the European Championships in Hamburg, Germany, France hosts the final Beijing qualifier July 15-20 in Marseille.