Kusti Nolvak and Mart Tiisaar were initially supposed to play in the qualifier at the Tlaxcala Challenge. But just a couple of days ago, they were bumped up to a main draw seed and hope to take full advantage of the opportunity when they measure up against some of the world's best teams.

Both members of Estonia’s leading pair are 30 years old. In fact, they were born just a day apart. Mart Tisaar is the oldest of the two, born on November 5, 1991, a day before Kusti Nolvak. And they both started with indoor volleyball, playing for the Estonian national team between 2013 and 2015.

Nolvak and Tisaar started playing international beach volleyball relatively late, in 2016, but quickly became familiar faces on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. They earned their first World Tour podium in 2017, a bronze at the Langkawi 1-star stop. In 2018, they claimed their first silver, at the Singapore 2-star. Then in 2019, they celebrated what was arguably the greatest achievement of their career so far, a 3-star silver in Jurmala.

“We are not the youngest team on paper, but we have just played one full Olympic cycle of beach volleyball. So I feel very young inside and I feel I'm just getting into the game,” 2.04m-tall blocker Mart Tiisaar told Volleyball World.

After ending last season on a high note, with the quarterfinals in Itapema, the Estonians are now ready and excited to get the next underway as they make their Beach Pro Tour debut on Thursday, with the Paris 2024 Olympics as the long-term goal in the back of their minds. They are seeded 15th in the Tlaxcala Challenge men’s main draw.

“To be honest, it was a surprise to see us in the qualification in the beginning,” Tiisaar said. “We are not used to being at tournaments of this level. And the line-up is crazy good! Nobody can be sure to advance, so getting a main draw spot is a great benefit.

“The new Olympic cycle always brings lots of excitement - new partnerships, some retirements and now a whole new tour! The Beach Pro Tour is exciting. Hopefully, it will take beach volleyball to the next level in the years to come.”

“I’m really looking forward to competing here in the main draw,” 1.89m-tall defender Kusti Nolvak added. “I really hope that the new Beach Pro Tour will be a big step forward for beach volleyball.”

Another striking similarity between the two partners is that they both became fathers for the first time in 2021. During the off-season, they turned it into an advantage as they travelled with their families and took longer trips than they usually do.

“Before arriving in Tlaxcala, we had a nice training camp for five weeks in Tenerife with our families, and we haven’t been home for a while now,” Nolvak said. “Becoming a dad has been a real life changer and I’m super grateful that I can be together with my wife and our one-year-old daughter as she takes her first steps. Playing beach volleyball has taught me so much, and the goal remains the same - to be a better human being.”

“Obtaining a spot at the Olympics feels realistic,” said Tiisaar. “But the real goal, the real challenge is to keep evolving in beach volleyball and also be a great dad and husband and provide a living for my family while playing the greatest game on earth.”

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