The 5 Winningest Nations at the EuroBeachVolley

The elite of European beach volleyball is returning to Austria for the first time since 2015 in just a few months as the A1 European Championships Vienna 2021 will reunite the greatest stars of the sport in the country’s capital from August 11-15.

First played in 1993, when only the men got to compete in Almeria, Spain, the event will reach its 29^th edition later this year in Vienna and a lot has happened in nearly three decades of matches across the continent.

A total of 160 athletes from 14 different countries have already stepped on the podium at the EuroBeachVolley and several of the 128 players who will compete in this year’s edition will be looking to have the same honor for the first time in their careers.

Over the years, some nations have emerged as dominant forces in the continent and here are the five countries which have enjoyed the most success:

Germany

One of the powerhouses of the sport at the international level and the only European nation to produce Olympic champions so far, Germany has been the most dominant country at the continental level. The nation has not only the highest amount of total medals at 33, but also more golds and silvers than any of their rivals at 13 and 11 – the women have been extremely successful with 22 medals and eight golds. A significant amount of their total comes from Olympic champions Laura Ludwig and Jonas Reckermann, who have collected nine and six medals respectively (including four golds each), the most for players in their respective genders. Only six of the 28 editions of the EuroBeachVolley didn’t have a German team at the podium.

Norway

The great form of Anders Mol and Christian Sørum over the last few years might make people believe that Norway’s success in beach volleyball is something recent, but that couldn’t be any farther from the truth. The Beach Volley Vikings’ recent victories in the tournament were extraordinary but they generated ‘only’ three of the country’s 20 medals at the EuroBeachVolley. The Nordic nation has been particularly prolific on the men’s side with the teams of Jan Kvalheim/Bjorn Maaseide and Jorre Kjemperud/Vegard Hoidalen, which played each other in the final in 1997, securing five medals each within the first ten editions of the event. On the women’s side, Anders’ mother Merita Berntsen won one of the country’s six medals, a silver in 1995.

Italy

Italy has long had a strong tradition in volleyball and that translated well to the beach when the sport gained relevance in the 1990s. The country has been more successful on the women’s side with 12 of the 20 Italian medals being won by female athletes. Annamaria Solazzi and Laura Bruschini respond for five of those medals, including three golds, all won within four years between 1997 and 2000. Olympic medalists Daniele Lupo and Paolo Nicolai repeated their achievements among the men several years later as they won gold medals in 2014, 2016 and 2017. The country’s top medal winner, however, is Lucilla Perrotta, who won one gold, one silver and four bronzes to become the second most successful woman in the EuroBeachVolley.

Switzerland

Switzerland has been at the podium in two of the last three editions of the EuroBeachVolley with Joana Heidrich/Anouk Vergé-Dépré taking gold in 2020 and Nina Betschart/Tanja Hüberli collecting silver in 2018, but the country has been historically more successful with the men as they won 13 of the nation’s 19 medals. The legendary Laciga brothers Martin and Paul claimed six medals together and made it to the final in five straight editions of the event, becoming the first team to win three in a row between 1998 and 2000. Their run was ended by compatriots Markus Egger and Sascha Heyer, who then won the country’s fourth-straight gold in 2001 – something no other nation can brag about. The other Swiss women’s title came with Simone Kuhn and Nicole Schnyder-Benoit in 2004.

The Netherlands

The Netherlands have also been among the best in the continent for quite some time as the country won the first of their 18 medals back in 1995, when Marko Klok and Michiel Van der Kuip took gold. Five of the Dutch other nine men’s medals, including all three golds, came by the hands of former indoor stars Reinder Nummerdor and Richard Schuil, who won three straight between 2008 and 2010 and also added a silver and a bronze to their totals. On the women’s side, the Netherlands have won three golds, each of them with two of Marleen van Iersel, Madelein Meppelink and Sanne Keizer on the team. Keizer/Van Iersel won in 2012, Meppelink/Van Iersel prevailed in 2014 and Keizer/Meppelink triumphed in 2018.