Power ranking every single sport at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics

6. Beach Volleyball

Beach volleyball is one of those sports that brings most of us back. We all have that random memory where we joined our own game and had that one very cool moment where we made THE play to secure a point. Or maybe it’s a funny story with your friends about how someone booted it when the game was on the line. Either way, beach volleyball is one of those sports that had a big part of the lives of those who grew up close to a beach or vacationed there often. 

That’s part of the sports popularity at the Olympics, but it also involves the sheer talent we see on both the men’s and women’s side. Some of the greatest female athletes in history were female beach volleyball players. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings are the most famous pair, but this year, it’s the esteemed pairings of Taryn Kloth/Kristen Nuss and Kelly Cheng/Sara Hughes will be looking to build on the legacies of female beach volleyball players. 

This was almost a competition between three amazing teams, as 2021 gold medalists Alix Klineman and April Ross did not qualify due to missed time (they both had babies). It goes to show how close this competition will be, as the defending champs will not be in Paris to defend their titles. We haven’t even mentioned Talita Antunes and Thamela Coradelli, who are the betting favorites at some books. 

This tells the story of this year’s beach volleyball, but what makes the sport as a whole great? With the biggest difference being the surface and active players, beach volleyball feels completely different from indoor volleyball. It tends to come with more stress, and the reason for the entertainment value is how close these matches tend to be, both for the men and the women.