For the first time ever, the United States is exiting an Olympic Games without bringing home a medal in beach volleyball.
Miles Partain and Andy Benesh were unable to reverse the trend against the Qatari duo of Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan in the quarter-finals on Wednesday, suffering a defeat of 21-14, 21-16. This marks the first time American athletes have faced a medal drought in this sport since its Olympic debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games.
With both women’s teams and another men’s team already knocked out of the competition, Partain and Benesh held the last hope for the US.
“I wish one of our teams had come through with a medal,” Partain expressed. “We gave it our all.”
According to Benesh, the absence of American medals in the sport at the Paris Games was not only due to a decline in U.S. team performance but also because the overall level of play internationally has improved.
“The game has changed significantly over the last two decades, with increased competition worldwide,” Benesh noted. “For those who love beach volleyball, it’s exciting to watch as players adopt diverse styles in both men’s and women’s matches.”
The American duo was ahead 12-11 in the first set at the Eiffel Tower Stadium, but a series of erroneous shots allowed the Qatari team to pull ahead. Younousse and Tijan delighted the night crowd with their creative and spontaneous moves.
“Qatar performed exceptionally well,” Benesh acknowledged. “We simply didn’t execute our plays as effectively.”
The Qatari team is still in the running to surpass their bronze finish in Tokyo three years prior, which was a historic milestone as the first Olympic medal in beach volleyball for any Middle Eastern country.
“We are living our dream. We have no expectations, we are simply dreaming,” Younousse said. “It’s a fantastic opportunity to compete here in front of the Eiffel Tower amidst such an incredible atmosphere.”
Defending champions Anders Berntsen Mol and Christian Sørum from Norway also shone brightly in the spotlight. They secured a victory of 21-16, 21-17 against Spain’s Pablo Herrera Allepuz, a silver medalist from the 2004 Athens Games, and Adrián Gavira.
The Norwegians clinched the first set with a clever block from Mol at the net, while Sørum sealed the match with a spike as refreshing breezes cooled the crowd following intense heat in the French capital. Mol celebrated with an impressive backflip, and Sørum humorously opted for a comedic backward roll.
They will compete against the German duo of Clemens Wickler and Nils Ehlers in Thursday’s semi-finals, while the Qataris are set to face Swedish jump-set specialists David Ahman and Jonatan Hellvig.
Earlier in the women’s quarter-finals on Wednesday, the top-ranked Brazilian team of Ana Patrícia Ramos and Duda Lisboa triumphed over Anastasija Samoilova and Tina Graudiņa of Latvia with scores of 21-16, 21-10. The Brazilians dropped to their knees and embraced after clinching victory on their second match point when Samoilova’s serve hit the net.
“It was challenging to anticipate their serves due to the extensive variation,” Ramos said through an interpreter. “However, we managed to recover well.”
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In another match, Canada’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson advanced to the semi-finals by defeating Spain’s Daniela Álvarez Mendoza and Tania Moreno with scores of 21-18, 21-18.
The Canadians secured a tightly contested first set when Moreno’s serve went long. After winning on their second match point, the Canadian duo celebrated under the net in front of a small group of enthusiastic flag-waving supporters.
In the semi-finals on Thursday, the Brazilian team will face the Australian duo of Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy, silver medalists from the Tokyo Games three years earlier, while the Canadians will go up against Nina Brunner and Tanja Hüberli from Switzerland.
