Kelly Claes, left, of the United States, reaches for the ball as Tina Graudina, of Latvia, defends during a women’s beach volleyball match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Kelly Claes, right, of the United States, hugs teammate Sarah Sponcil after winning a women’s beach volleyball match against Latvia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Kelly Claes, second from left, of the United States, hugs teammate Sarah Sponcil after winning a women’s beach volleyball match against Latvia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Tina Graudina, left, of Latvia, celebrates a point with teammate Anastasija Kravcenoka during a women’s beach volleyball match against the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Katja Stam, right, of the Netherlands, celebrates a play with teammate Raisa Schoon during a women’s beach volleyball match against Switzerland at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Megumi Murakami, right, of Japan, dives for the ball as teammate Miki Ishii looks on during a women’s beach volleyball match against Germany at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Laura Ludwig, of Germany, dives for the ball during a women’s beach volleyball match against Japan at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Miki Ishii, of Japan, dives for the ball during a women’s beach volleyball match against Germany at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Konstantin Semenov, left, of the Russian Olympic Committee, with tape on his feet jumps during a men’s beach volleyball match against Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Konstantin Semenov, of the Russian Olympic Committee, uses tape on his feet during a men’s beach volleyball match against Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
Damian Schumann, of Australia, dives for he ball during a men’s beach volleyball match against the Russian Olympic Committee at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.
TOKYO (AP) — Beach volleyball’s future was on display at the Shiokaze Park venue Monday morning for the Olympic debut of Americans Kelly Claes and Sarah Sponcil.
Three of the four players in the U.S. victory over Latvia came up through an NCAA beach volleyball program that has only been around since 2012. Claes and Latvia’s Tina Graudina both went to Southern California, and Sponcil played at rival UCLA. (USC coach Dain Blanton, the 2000 Olympic gold medalist, was courtside working for NBC.)
For previous generations — like the other U.S. women’s team, 39-year-old April Ross and her 31-year-old partner Alix Klineman — college beach volleyball was not an option.
“I think a lot of athletes in the U.S., this younger generation is coming up because of the NCAA, which is super exciting,” Claes said after the three-set victory over her fellow Trojan and Anastasija Kravcenoka. “I’m really excited to see just how the sport grows even more because of that.”
Since beach volleyball was added to the Olympics in 1996, it has been forced to rely on players who switched over after playing indoors in college and perhaps even beyond in European or Brazilian professional leagues. But the varsity beach volleyball program has given Claes, 25, and Sponcil, 24, an option that wasn’t available to their predecessors. (Men still don’t have a college beach program in the U.S.)