Canadians make history, win beach volleyball gold
Humana-Parades and Pavan strike gold, men collect silver
GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA — Canadians Sarah Pavan and Melissa Humana-Paredes made history Thursday, dispatching an Australian pair to become the first women to win beach volleyball gold at the Commonwealth Games.
Ranked No. 1 in the world by the FIVB, the Canadians had to battle wind and rain as well as resilient opponents in Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar to triumph 21-19, 22-20.
The Canadians fought off a set point at 20-19 in the final set and put the Aussies away with a gutbusting final point that saw 17 touches of the ball and some miraculous saves on either side of the net. When it was done, the five-foot-nine Humana-Paredes jumped into the arms of the sixfoot-five Pavan to celebrate putting their names in the games record book.
“It feels amazing,” said Pavan, a 31-year-old from Kitchener. “To be the first gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games for beach volleyball is such an honour. And we’ve made history. Hopefully this will continue to be an event in the Commonwealth Games but there’s nothing like the first.”
The six-foot-six Pavan is no stranger to success on the volleyball court, going back to her time at Forest Heights when she led the Trojans to three consecutive all-Ontario indoor high school championships (2002-2004).
She moved on to play at the University of Nebraska and led the Cornhuskers to the 2006 NCAA championship, earning MVP honours at the season- ending tournament. She racked up numerous individual awards during her collegiate career, including three straight Big 10 player of the year awards (20052007) and the American Volleyball Coaches Association player of the year award in 2006. She was also a four-time all-American.
Pavan spent 10 seasons with the Canadian national indoor team before making the move to beach volleyball in 2013 and, with partner Heather Barnsley of Toronto, represented Canada at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The two bowed out in the quarter-finals and went their separate ways.
Pavan partnered with Humana-Paredes in September of 2016.
Meanwhile, Canadians Sam Schachter and Sam Pedlow had to settle for silver, losing the men’s final 21-19, 18-21, 18-16 to Australians Chris McHugh and Damien Schumann in an entertaining nail-biter that lasted 61 minutes.
Both Canadian teams had to deal with a polite but loud, partisan crowd at the Coolangatta Beachfront venue in Gold Coast’s southernmost suburb.
The beach volleyball competition has been a huge hit here, with every session a sellout. The venue was rocking Thursday with 4,000 spectators filling the temporary stands.
As surf pounded the beach outside, an energetic MC urged fans to high-five each other after big plays on the sand. Fans stamped their feet, posed for a “muscle-cam” on the big screen, did the wave on cue and sang along to Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”
In reaching the final, the Canadian women did not drop a set and gave up just 77 points in five matches.
But the Australians made them work for it with the fivefoot-eight Artacho del Solar putting on a remarkable defensive display.
The Canadian women won the first three points of the match only to see the Australians claw their way back. The Aussies led 19-18 before Canada rallied to win the first set 21-18 with a Pavan block capping a three-point run.
It was more of the same in the second set with the Canadians staving off the Australians.
“Australia’s a great team and we knew that they weren’t going to let up, especially in front of this crowd,” said Pavan. “I think that we showed a lot of grit and heart. Technically speaking, it definitely was not our best game, but we did not give up at all. And I think that’s really important, especially in these circumstances with a crowd like it was.”
Both women expressed hope that the sport will continue to be part of the games program. It has yet to be confirmed for 2022 in Birmingham, England.
“What else can you ask for?” said Pavan, who now makes her home in the volleyball hotbed of Hermosa Beach, California. “The fans love it. For the athletes, we love playing in multisport games and environments like this. So fingers crossed that they’ll include it in the next Commonwealth (Games).”
“It still blows my mind that beach volleyball isn’t more popular than it is,” added HumanaParedes, a 25-year-old from Toronto.
Both men’s finalists showed off some stellar defence and, via Pedlow and McHugh, some real firepower at the net. It was close throughout, with neither team having more than a three-point lead.
The Canadians had their chances, leading 12-9 in the third set and having a match point at 14-13. But two poor serves by Pedlow and a ball into the net cost the Canadians as the Aussies rallied for the win.
Schumann jumped into McHugh’s arms while the Canadians fell to their knees after the decisive point.
“We let it get away from us at the end and we’ll feel that one for a while,” lamented Pedlow.
Schachter, from Richmond Hill, and Pedlow, from Barrie, are ranked 14th in the world, compared to No. 20 for McHugh and Schumann.