Under the imposing silhouette of the Eiffel Tower, beach volleyball offers one of the most iconic images of the Paris Games. An improvised open-air arena, with stands that shake with the jolts of the crowd, stands at the foot of the monument, and on a clear sand four players compete in jumps, slaps, dunks and stretches in the midst of a summer holiday atmosphere.
In the afternoon, the sun shines on the match between Daniela Álvarez and Tania Moreno, the first female couple to reach the Olympic quarterfinals in Spanish beach volleyball. They are eliminated by Canadians Melissa Humana and Brandie Wilkerson by 21-18 and 21-18, and say goodbye with a mixture of feelings: pride at setting foot on a new stage, but also anger at the match that slipped away “due to details.”
At night, when the Eiffel Tower lights up, Pablo Herrera and Adrián Gavira, the old rockers, 42 years old and six Games already, the former, 36 years old and four Olympics, his partner, jump out. They also lose in the quarterfinals, against the powerful Norwegians Anders Mol and Christian Soerum, by 21-16 and 21-17 in 37 minutes.
For the two Spanish couples, it is the end of the journey. For Pablo Herrera, something more. The man from Castellón says goodbye from the centre of the beach, hand on heart. It is his farewell to the Games and in a month he will retire from official competition. “There is another life after sport,” says the great reference of Spanish beach volleyball, silver in Athens 2004 with Javier Bosma, a 21-year career as a professional, 15 of them with his inseparable Adri, and 39 medals in the showcase. “I have thanked him for all these years. It has been incredible to be by his side,” says Herrera after the meeting about Gavira; “we have always believed in ourselves. The Herrera-Gavira brand is that no matter how much they told us that we were old and gave us up for lost, we have always recovered and here we are, Olympic diploma in Paris.”
Miguel Tona (EFE)
“We have bitter feelings, we haven’t been able to mark the details, but we are proud of the entire Olympic journey,” explains Tania Moreno, 22 years old, like Daniela Álvarez, both in their Olympic debut. “I won’t deny it, I wanted more, a medal for Spain. What Tani and I have done is very nice, I am very proud. It has been very special to show the world our game, who we are, and hopefully playing these matches in such an iconic place like Paris will bring more fans to continue growing,” adds an excited Daniela Álvarez. “They have enormous potential, the future depends on them,” assures the coach, Fran Marco. The Eiffel Tower is already behind us. Next stop, Los Angeles 2028.
Miguel Tona (EFE)
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