Partnership moves took place in Switzerland, the United States, Germany and Austria
Published 05:02, 22 Jan 2026
Paris Olympic medalists Nina Brunner and Tanja Hüberli will be back together in 2026
With the start of the 2026 international beach volleyball season coming up, new teams have been formed in some of the sport's most traditional countries, setting the stage for another exciting year of intense competition around the globe.
Switzerland, the United States, Germany and Austria were some of the nations that saw changes happen in their top teams, with other new announcements potentially happening before the first tournament of the year.
Switzerland had the most significant changes, with the return of two players who took the country to the women's podium in the last Olympic editions returning to the sand after becoming mothers and taking each half of one of the country's top teams in 2025.
A Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist, 30-year-old defender Nina Brunner will be back on the Beach Pro Tour, rejoining her longtime partner, 33-year-old blocker Tanja Hüberli, who spent the last season with up-and-coming Leona Kerner.
Brunner and Hüberli became partners in 2016 and went to two Olympics together, finishing ninth in Tokyo 2020 and winning bronze in Paris. The two also triumphed in two editions of the European Championships, taking gold in 2021 and 2023. Over the nine years, the Swiss appeared in 89 tournaments as partners, winning six golds, six silvers and nine bronzes.
One of the most promising young players in Switzerland, the 20-year-old Kernen will move from one Olympic medalist to another, pairing with 34-year-old blocker Joana Mäder, who was also away in 2025 as she started a family.
Mäder is one of the most experienced players in international beach volleyball, having represented Switzerland at both the Rio 2016 and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she won bronze with former partner Anouk Vergé-Dépré. Competing internationally since 2010, she's a 2020 European champion and won four international events in her career.
"I’m very motivated and excited to be back," Mäder said. "At the same time, it will certainly be a big challenge, as I’m now a mother and it won’t be easy to juggle everything. I’m looking forward to teaming up with Leona. Despite her young age, she’s already a fantastic defensive player. We both still have the potential to improve, and I’m excited about that."
Beach volleyball powerhouse the United States will also have different teams on the women's side after the split of Kelly Cheng and Molly Shaw, who spent the 2025 season together and won gold at the Beach Pro Tour João Pessoa Elite.
A 2023 world champion and a two-time Olympian, the 30-year-old Cheng picked up 23-year-old Megan Kraft, who spent the last two and a half seasons with Terese Cannon, winning seven medals on the Beach Pro Tour.
"I’ve watched Meg grow into one of the most complete beach players in the world,” said Cheng. “We both share a deep drive to compete, improve, and represent our country with pride. But even more than that, we share a deep commitment to our faith. This partnership is about building something big together, not just for one season, but for the long run."
A big change also happened on the men's side, with 30-year-old blocker Andy Benesh ending his three-and-a-half-year partnership with Miles Partain that represented the United States at the Paris Olympics and won a pair of beach pro Tour golds. He will join forces with 33-year-old Taylor Crabb, who only appeared in four Beach Pro Tour events in the last two years, but is determined to return to international competition in 2026 as the duo pursues qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
"Where both of us are in our careers makes this the right moment,” Crabb said. “I’ve had time away from international tournaments, and that fire is fully back. Andy has been the top blocker in the country for the last four years. When the best player says he wants to team up, you say yes."
Germany will also see changes on the men's side, with 28-year-old Paul Henning and 26-year-old Lukas Pfretzschner dropping Lui Wüst and Sven Winter, respectively, to pursue Olympic qualification together.
"It kind of crystallized over the last few weeks and months," Henning explained. "It wasn't fundamentally a decision against Lui, but rather a decision for Lukas within the overall context. I have high hopes for this and see a lot of potential in us. We bring different strengths and skills that we can use to help each other both on and off the court."
In Austria, the new team will have 30-year-old Philipp Waller, who was most recently playing with Christoph Dressler, and 29-year-old Moritz Pristauz, who had both Julian Hörl and Alexander Horst as partners in 2025.
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