A year ago today my friend Sarah Pavan and her teammate Melissa Humãna-Paredes became beach volleyball world champions. The event was in Hamburg and is held every two year. The winner of the event the year before the Olympics automatically qualifies for the games. This is the most difficult event in the sport - more than the Olympics, although the big goal is always Olympic gold.
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I was reminded of his intense passion while watching the beach volleyball world championships in Germany this summer. Forty-eight men’s teams and 48 women’s teams competed in one of the most grueling, graceful, explosive, and entertaining sports being played today. Watching the men and women spike, block, and dive around a court that is almost impossible for two people to adequately cover makes one appreciate the elite level of athleticism necessary to be competitive on an international level. After basketball, it may very well may be the second-most exciting international sport.
The semi-final match had the most drama. In the tie-breaking set the Swiss team of Nina Betschart and Tanja Hüberli had a run near the end, but the Canadians managed to come together and take the match.
In the final Sarah and Melissa play the top American team of April Ross and Alix Kleinman. The play is outstanding.