The hottest ticket south of Havana
BEACH VOLLEYBALL: Copacabana Beach’s 12,000-seat arena expected to be filled throughout Rio Games
For beach volleyball players, this is like playing hockey at Montreal’s Bell Centre, baseball at Yankee Stadium or golf at Augusta National.
When the Olympic tournament gets underway Aug. 6 in Rio de Janeiro, the players will be setting and spiking in the sands of Copacabana, one of the world’s most famous beaches. It’s the most popular tourist beach in the world, ranked ahead of those in Hawaii, Mexico, Australia and Jamaica. To many of the athletes, it’s a shrine. “It’s legendary,” says Canadian Olympian Josh Binstock. “It’s one thing to make it to the Olympics in general, because it’s always great and special, but to go to a place where it’s legendary is amazing. It’s the top sport in the country next to soccer, so the fans there will be on a different level than any other country in the world for beach volleyball.”
The Copacabana Beach venue, with its 12,000-seat arena, will undoubtedly be packed every day of the Olympics. The excitement of the sport combined with the festive atmosphere that surrounds it make beach volleyball a big-time attraction at any Olympics.
“The last Olympics were in London and it’s not really known for beach volleyball,” Toronto’s Kristina Valjas, who will compete alongside Victoria’s Jamie Broder in Rio, says with a laugh.
“They set it up and it was special in its own way, but this is perfect for beach volleyball. The whole country understands the sport, they have their favourite athletes, they are very lively in the crowd. It’s going to be a totally awesome atmosphere and experience.”
Round-robin games will be played from 7 a.m. Pacific time with the last match starting at 9 p.m., meaning plenty of beach volleyball will be shown during prime-time hours in the United States and Canada. These men and women will be stars.
“Beach volleyball is pretty much one of the premier events in general, but in Brazil I can only imagine the magnitude,” Binstock says.
Binstock, 35, and partner Sam Schachter, 26, were the last team to qualify for the Olympic tournament. The Richmond Hill, Ont., athletes had to beat Sam Pedlow and Grant O’Gorman in a final Canadian qualifier July 16 and are one of four Canadian teams in Rio.
“The beauty of the situation now with Canadian volleyball is I can honestly say I feel that all four teams have a legitimate shot at medalling,” Binstock says. “Every team that’s in the Olympics, men and women, have been on the podium on the world tour in the past and with all the same teams that are in the Olympics playing in those tournaments.”
Canada has only one medal in Olympic competition, when John Child and Mark Heese won bronze during beach volleyball’s debut in Atlanta in 1996.
One of the reasons the sport is so popular in Brazil is the host country has won 11 Olympic medals since 1996, including two gold. But it’s also a tailor-made sport for spectators with finely toned, highly skilled athletes competing in beach wear.
“It’s an event that sells out every game no matter who is playing because of the environment and atmosphere, the fun,” Binstock says. “There’s a lot of music going on, they bring in dancers. It’s a modern, newish sport. But I think people also get an appreciation for how serious and professional the sport is in terms of the difficulty. That’s what draws so many people to watch the sport.”