Qatar’s Sharif Yunus reacts after beating the United States in the men’s beach volleyball quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics. For the first time since beach volleyball became an Olympic sport in 1996, the U.S. team was without a medal.
Myles Partan and Andy Benesh were the only remaining Americans, losing to Sharif of Qatar 21-14, 21-16 in the quarterfinals Wednesday under the Eiffel Tower in Paris. · Yunus and Ahmed Tijan.
“The Qatari team played very well,” Benesh said. “We just didn’t execute as well as they did.”
The other men’s team, consisting of Miles Evans and former NBA player Chase Budinger, was previously eliminated in the round of 16.
On the women’s side, Kristen Nuss and Taryn Kloth lost in the round of 16, with Sara Hughes and Kelly Cheng in four was defeated in the finals.
The medals were completely blocked after Pathan and Benesh failed to win.
“I hope one of our teams can (win a medal),” Pattan said. “We’ve done our best.”
Prior to this year’s competition, the U.S. women’s team had won four of the previous five gold medals. The legendary duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings teamed up to win three straight championships from 2004 to 2012 .
But the days of U.S. dominance in beach volleyball appear to be a thing of the past.
What’s more, things have changed now.
“It’s a little different than it was 20 years ago. There’s a lot of competition around the world,” Benesh said. “As a beach volleyball fan, it’s fun to watch, with people playing in different styles in the men’s and women’s games.”
The Qatar pair will face Sweden’s David Achman and Jonatan Helvig in Thursday’s semifinals. Germany’s Niels Ehlers and Clemens Wikler will face Norway’s Anders Mohr and Christian Solem in the other men’s semifinal.
In the women’s competition, Canada’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandi Wilkerson will face Switzerland’s Tanya Hubli and Nina Brenner, while Brazil’s Ana ·Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Santos Lisbon will face Australia’s Mariaf Atajo del Sola and Taliqua Clancy.
–Scene-level media
