In 2023, Austrian beach volleyball stars Alexander Horst and Julian Hörl not only demonstrated why they are Austria's number one men's team but also cemented their place in the international beach elite. Despite a challenging season preparation due to Julian Hörl's shoulder surgery, they secured the bronze medal early on at the Challenger in Saquarema. Other season highlights included a sensational fourth place at the Elite16 tournament in Paris and the silver medal at the Challenger in Espinho.
The two veterans face exciting challenges on the world stage at the Olympic Games in Paris, and it remains to be seen what performances they will deliver there. At the A1 Beach Pro Vienna, they at least made it to ninth place.
Not many beach volleyball players can call themselves double European champions, one of the few among them are Latvians Anastasija Samoilova (formerly Kravčenoka) and Tina Graudina.
After their first European Championship title in 2019, the two were also able to beat 2021 European Champions Hüberli/Brunner in 2022. At the 2023 European Championships in Vienna, however, they had to settle for ninth place after being shut out by Alvarez/Moreno.
As the top-seeded women’s team at the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024, the Latvian beach stars were looking to improve their results at this year’s tournament in the Austrian capital before heading to their second Olympic Games in Paris this summer. At the Olympic dress rehearsal in Vienna, they finished in ninth place.
For years, the Beach Volley Vikings Anders Mol and Christian Sørum have represented the top of the Beach Volleyball World Tour and in 2023 secured a total of three gold, three silver and one bronze medal. This impressive record deservedly catapulted them to first place in the world rankings.
Despite their overall success, Mol and Sørum experienced some surprising defeats: They were unexpectedly eliminated in the quarterfinals of the A1 CEV EuroBeachVolley 2023 in Vienna, where they had previously been unbeaten in four consecutive tournaments. A similar fate awaited them at the World Championships in Mexico, where they had to settle for fifth place. The defeat at the Tour Finals in Doha against Åhman/Hellvig underlines the fact that the competition is not sleeping.
So the 2024 season remains exciting: in Vienna they were able to reach the top of the podium for a fifth time, but will they be able to secure their next Olympic medal in Paris 2024?
Back in 2013, the sisters began their volleyball career together. Despite also existing talent on the ski slope, the two decided against the family sport and started with the volleyball academy.
They also proved their impressive talent during their time at a US college, where they reached the final of the NCAA, the highest level of college sport. The pair's rapid rise on the big stage is also unstoppable and ended with their first victory on the World Tour in the 2022 season. Especially in front of a home crowd, the two seem even more inspired and have always been able to go one better than their previous performances – for example, they became Austrian champions in 2023. On the international stage, they also finished in top 10 spots at five different Challenge tournaments last season.
Svenja Müller and Cinja Tillmann have formed a duo since 2021 and since their first Elite16 gold in Ostrava 2022 at the latest, practically nothing has stood in their way.
A short time later, they secured the bronze medal at the World Championships in Rome and went on to become German Champions. Their run of success continued in 2023 with another German title, a bronze medal in Ostrava and four more top ten finishes at Elite16 tournaments.
So it's no wonder that they are now at the top of the German women's duos and won their second Elite16 gold at the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024. Their world ranking points also enabled them to qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris for the first time – alongside their compatriots Ludwig/Lippmann.
Switzerland's Anouk Vergé-Dépré and Joana Mäder, both former indoor volleyball players, have been a beach team since 2017 and the scene would no longer be the same without them.
In their very first year as partners, they made it to ninth place at the World Championships and won the home title at the Swiss Championships. Their other career highlights also include the 2020 European title, which they earned in the final against Behrens/Tillmann in Jurmala. They also finished third at the 2021 Olympics. However, they fell just short of qualifying for 2024 due to a lack of points in the world rankings and were only just overtaken by compatriots Esmée/Zoé.
Their successes in Vienna include a fourth place at the 2023 European Championships, where they narrowly lost the final podium spot to Ludwig/Lippmann. In the 2024 season, they improved on this and took second place at the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024.
The Polish top duo of Michał Bryl and Bartosz Łosiak have only been playing together since 2022, but have already shown great talent during this time.
Together, they finished fourth at the European Championships in Munich, where they were beaten by Beach Volley Vikings Mol/Sørum in two sets. They suffered a similar fate at the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024, where they again lost to the Norwegians in the final. However, their silver medal from this Elite16 tournament makes up nicely alongside gold from Hamburg 2022 and bronze from Uberlandia 2023.
Another highlight of this season for them is the Olympic Games in Paris, where they will be the only Polish duo to represent their home country in beach volleyball. Although both have already competed at the Olympic Games with other partners, this will be the first time they will try their luck as a duo in the French capital.
Chilean cousins Marco and Esteban Grimalt have been playing together since 2011 and have enjoyed success at both South American and global level.
For example, they finished ninth at the 2019 World Championships and claimed a gold medal in the same year and a bronze medal at the 2023 Pan American Games. In 2022, they also won the Elite16 in Gstaad and can now also boast a bronze medal from the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024. The 2024 season will also see them make their third appearance at the Olympic Games - but they have yet to win an Olympic medal. After narrowly failing to qualify via their world ranking points, they gained entry by triumphing at the South American Continental Cup.
In the 2024 season, they can also look forward to their third participation in the Olympic Games - but they have yet to win an Olympic medal. After narrowly failing to qualify via their world ranking points, they gained entry by winning the South American Continental Cup.
Staying on the ball© ACTS / Conny Kurth
Center Court Action© ACTS / Johannes Friedl
Joy for the winners© ACTS / Conny Kurth
The best fans in the world© ACTS / Andreas Pichler-Kroess
Spectacular rallies© ACTS / Andreas Pichler-Kroess
Net battle© ACTS / Andreas Pichler-Kroess
Pure emotion© ACTS / Andreas Pichler-Kroess
Goosebump atmosphere© ACTS / Conny Kurth