When the match schedule for the beach volleyball tournament of the Paris 2024 Olympics was released, players from the 48 teams qualified to compete in arguably the most iconic venue the sport has ever had, at the feet of the Eiffel Tour, started an exciting countdown to enjoy one of the greatest experiences of their lives.

Some had to wait longer than others to get on the sand and play in front of thousands of fans in the French capital, but Germans Nils Ehlers and Clemens Wickler needed to be a little more patient than everyone else as they were part of one of the last two teams to get started in the Games. On Tuesday, they made their wait worth it, beginning their campaign in Pool C with a clean 2-0 (21-15, 21-17) victory over French Julien Lyneel and Rémi Bassereau.

“We were very nervous and looking forward to getting started here,” Wickler commented. “Especially in the last two days, after we came to watch the German girls (Svenja Müller and Cinja Tillmann) play and saw how the atmosphere was, we couldn’t wait to get on the court. I’m glad that we got to start with a win. It wasn’t an easy match, but we did it and are very proud.”

The Germans arrived in Paris last Wednesday and couldn’t avoid feeling anxious about seeing all the other teams competing and enjoying the incredible atmosphere at the Eiffel Tower Stadium. What they didn’t expect was that all the excitement and noise they could feel from the stands would be even more impressive from the court.

“It’s very different on the court,” Ehlers reflected. “The music and the fans were so loud that we couldn’t even talk on the court during points. We tried to limit our communication to the necessary and on some occasions, I had to really shout to make sure Clemens would hear me - and I don't know if he did. But it’s great that we got that first win, I feel a big pressure relief right now.”

As they waited for their debut, Ehlers and Wickler kept preparing to play, but also had enough time to enjoy the Olympics in other ways. Besides coming out to watch beach volleyball, volleyball and rugby matches at the venues, they also took part in the Opening Ceremony last Friday.

“In the first days, we just practiced as we always do before the start of tournaments,” Ehlers added. “We managed to get a day off on Saturday and we used it to go watch matches here at the stadium and also other sports, which was nice.”

Olympic Games Paris 2024 Beach Volleyball: schedule and results

The opening-match victory gave the Germans a head start in Pool C and they could book a spot in the Round of 16 as early as Thursday, when they play Australians Thomas Hodges and Zachery Schubert at 9:00 local time (7:00 GMT). The Aussies also made their debut on Tuesday and lost to Polish Michal Bryl and Bartosz Łosiak 2-0 (21-16, 21-16).

Ehlers and Wickler have been having a solid season on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour in 2024, having made five semifinal appearances in seven events, but unfortunately for them, only one of those runs ended at the podium. In Paris, they want to take the next step and give Germany their third medal on the men’s side, adding to the gold earned by Julius Brink and Jonas Reckermann in London 2012 and the bronze collected by Jörg Ahmann and Axel Hager in Sydney 2000.

“We’ve been having some good results, especially this season,” Wickler reflected. “We’ve played many matches against the best teams in the world and it’s clear that we can perform at a high level against them. I think the difference has been that while they can maintain their level for the entire match, we’ve just been able to hold ours for a set or a set and a half. We’re working to be more consistent with that, but it won’t come overnight, it’s a process. Maybe it happens here, anything can happen.”

Pools D and F complete the second round

If the teams from Pool C only got to make their debuts on Tuesday, the ones from Pools D and F are one step ahead as they get to play their second matches at the Paris 2024 Olympics on the same day.

In Pool D, the first match of the day had Cubans Jorge Alayo and Noslen Diaz beating Brazilians Andre Loyola and George Wanderley 2-0 (21-13, 21-18). Later, Americans Miles Partain and Andy Benesh topped Moroccans Mohamed Abicha and Zouheir Elgraoui also 2-0 (21-12, 28-26).

With the results, the Cubans lead the pool with four points and are guaranteed in the Round of 16, while Brazilians and Americans are tied with three and Moroccans rank fourth with two.

Pool E also has two matches and in the first of them, Spanish veterans Pablo Herrera and Adrián Gavira defeated French Youssef Krou and Arnaud Gauthier-Rat 2-1 (23-21, 21-23, 15-8) to claim their first win in the event. Later, the Netherlands’ Stefan Boermans and Yorick de Groot defeated USA’s Miles Evans/Chase Budinger 2-0 (21-13, 21-15).

The Dutch are in first place with four points and are a lock for the elimination rounds. Americans and Spanish follow with three, while the French got two.

Quick links:
Paris 2024 Olympic Beach Volleyball
VBTV
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter