Beach Volleyball (action)

NBC has always made sure that I get a ticket to go see at least one event at each Olympics I've been to.  Thanks to John Pastore for getting me a ticket to Beach Volleyball yesterday, it was great!

Beach Volleyball is a very demanding sport, and the particpants are tremendous athletes.  They are also very fit, very good looking, and scantily clad.  Makes for good TV, and enthusiastic spectators.

I'm going to separate my Beach Volleyball photos into "Action" and "Scenery" shots.  The action shots illustrate the athleticism of the sport, while the scenery shots "expose" the more entertainment-like aspects of the sport.  (If that doesn't appeal to you, you might want to skip my next post).

The matches started at 2:30pm, and there were four matches scheduled, but I could only stay for three, and even that was pushing it.  I ended up getting to bed at 6:30pm, and had received permission to sleep a little longer and come in later at 1:30am, so that I could get at least 6 hours sleep.

The first match was between Germany and the Netherlands, and Germany took the match in two games straight, though both were close games.

The second match was between Great Britain and Russia.  The crowd was, of course, solidly on side with Team GB, but they were really no match for the Rusians.

The third match was between the USA and Spain, and was a very close match.  Both teams came into this match with two victories, so this match would determine the winner of their group.

The teams split the first two games, forcing a third game for the match.  In Beach Volleyball, the first two games are played to 21, and the last game is played to 15.  Points are scored on each rally, regardless of who is serving.

The third game was the closest of the match, and ended up going beyond 15 points because you must win by two points.

Ultimately, the USA prevailed, after which I had to leave to get home to sleep (so I missed the fourth match). 

Overall, it was a really pleasant day.  The London weather is totally weird though - if the sun was out it was hot, when the clouds came it was breezy and cool, and it rained on and off, even when the sun was shining.

Lastly, I also wanted to note that my daughter's synchronized skating teammate's father, John Child (and his partner, Mark Heese), won a bronze medal for Canada in Beach Volleyball at the summer games in Atlanta 1996, in which the sport of Beach Volleyball debuted (which was also my first games providing support for NBC).