Beach volleyball has taken Anders Mol and Christian Sørum all around the planet, but this week the reigning Olympic and world champions are experiencing something new on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour.

After winning gold medals at international events in Asia, Europe, South and North America, the Norwegians are, for the first time in their careers, competing on the African continent at this week’s Cape Town Elite16 tournament in South Africa.

· Watch all matches at the Beach Pro Tour Elite16 event in Cape Town live on Volleyball TV.

Cape Town isn’t, however, an entirely new location for Mol and Sørum, who visited the city last November on vacation. Back in town to compete, the Beach Volley Vikings had a solid first day at the Grand Parade, winning both of their Pool A matches and securing a spot in the quarterfinals.

Cape Town Elite16 Entry List - Match Schedule and Results

In their opening match, the reigning world champions topped compatriots and training partners Hendrik Mol and Mathias Berntsen in straight sets (21-16, 21-19). Later, they returned to the court to dominate Austrians Robin Seidl and Philipp Waller to win another two-setter (21-15, 21-16).

“We really loved this place the first time we came to visit and to have a beach volleyball tournament here is amazing,” Mol commented. “I’m very happy about that and it was nice to get it started. It was a little windy here and we had to adapt. It’s been a while since we last played in Paris, so we’re looking to get into the rhythm a little bit more.”

Although their second trip to Cape Town was made for professional reasons, the Norwegians still found the time to enjoy some of what the city has to offer. Prior to the start of the Cape Town Elite16, the two got to visit the city’s aquarium, where they interacted with turtles.

“It was really cool to swim with the turtles and the other fish,” Sørum said. “It was an amazing experience. It was cool to see the fantastic rehabilitation work they do with hurt animals there, but also a little sad to see that humans can cause so much damage to them. That’s a very important message they are trying to send out.”

The first African city to host a Beach Pro Tour Elite16 tournament, Cape Town is an ideal destination for the event, offering a beautiful and diverse landscape and interesting entertainment options for players and fans alike.

“Cape Town is a lovely city,” Mol commented. “It’s very diverse and has so much to offer. We had the opportunity to visit a lot of different places last time and there are mountains and the ocean, all together. And this week there’s also great beach volleyball to watch.”

Besides the Norwegians, Olympic medallists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen were the only other team to win two matches on Thursday. The Dutch beat Australians Izac Carracher and Mark Nicolaidis in two sets (21-14, 21-16) and then needed all three (21-14, 18-21, 15-11) to overcome Austrians Martin Ermacora and Moritz Pristauz. Brouwer and Meeuwsen are at the top of Pool B.

Qataris Ahmed Tijan and Cherif Younousse and Swedish pair David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig won the first Pool C encounters, while Italians Paolo Nicolai and Samuele Cottafava and French team Arthur Canet and Téo Rotar came out on top in Pool D.

Pool play will be completed on Friday, ahead of the elimination rounds, which will feature both the quarterfinals and the semifinals on Saturday. The medal matches for both genders will be played on Sunday.

Quick links:
Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Cape Town Elite16
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