PARIS: There were Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes, trying to wrap their heads around the moment.
These are not some starry-eyed young athletes on a world stage for the first time. Hughes is 29. Cheng is 28. They’re the defending FIVB world champions and one of the greatest duos in college volleyball history. They once rattled off 103 straight wins at the University of Southern California and finished their NCAA career with a 147-4 record and two national titles. They’ve seen some things.
But this was Sunday night in Paris. Cheng and Hughes walked onto the sand for their first match of the 2024 Olympics, waving to a packed house of 12,000 fans, and went through some quick prematch warmups. They tried to treat it like any other night. Then they sat and waited.
The sun had set about an hour earlier in Paris, leaving behind an orange glow blending with a blue-black sky. And in that sky, directly above this beach volleyball stadium, loomed the Eiffel Tower. Right there. Perhaps the single-most known structure in the world — 1,083 feet of iron and trusses and rivets and pillars — staring down at them.
The lights snapped off in the stadium. Out came the phones. All of them. All 12,000. The crowd vibrated with anticipation. Over the speakers, the tick-tock of a clock counted down faster and faster as low lights turned the stadium pink, then purple, then red. The clock struck 10 p.m. Then the Eiffel Tower, as it does every night at the same time, lit up in a glimmer of sparkling lights as fans clapped along.
If there’s a stadium anywhere that can match that view, we’ve yet to see it.
"That was iconic," Cheng said later.
In what rapidly evolved into a Summer Olympic arms race of beach volleyball venues being placed in the boldest locations possible, Paris 2024 organizers walked in and flipped the table over. They decided to place their sandpit directly in the middle of the Champ de Mars, the public green space at the foot of the tower. This prime real estate is typically filled with families, groups of friends, street artists, and young lovers. Of all 32 sports being played in these Olympics, none has a location that rivals beach volleyball. Tickets are hard to come by and will only get harder as the matches advance and fans’ pictures land on Instagram.
You have to feel sorry for Los Angeles organizers. The plan is for 2028 to be played on the beach in Santa Monica. That sounds great, except when you see what Paris has done. Perhaps atop an O on the Hollywood sign might have been better.
Beach volleyball’s Olympic history dates back to 1996 and a simple artificial beach stadium in Clayton County Park outside Atlanta. Things stepped up around 2012, when London placed a 15,000-seat beach volleyball court in the Horse Guards Parade, the ceremonial parade ground in St. Jamess Park in central London. In 2016, Rio organizers went further, building a stadium directly on Copacabana beach, marrying nature and competition, as L.A. will do. Tokyo placed its stadium in Shiokaze Park.
Then came Paris.
“That’s a memory that will be imprinted on my brain forever,” said Kristen Nuss, a member of the other American women duo in the field, winner of a Saturday night match over Canada. “This will be a hard one to top. I am not sure how anyone else would do it.”
Cheng is the lone US beach volleyball player, male or female, competing in these Games to compete in a previous Olympics. She saw clips of the pre-match show before Nuss and teammate Taryn Kloth’s match on Saturday. She knew what was coming on Sunday. Still, when stadium lights went down and the Eiffel Tower lit up, the moment took over.
“So surreal, so special,” she said.
“The best feeling in the world,” Hughes said. “I’ve never experienced anything like that.”
Cheng and Hughes got over the jitters, knocking off the Czech Republic in two sets.
Those jitters, though, are very real. As if competing in the Olympics isn’t enough. The enormity of it all can be overwhelming. It’s easy to feel impossibly small in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. As you know you look like an ant from the top.
“It is mixed feelings because we are so focused on not getting influenced by that, not having a lot of emotions, doing our job,” said Brazilian Andr Loyola Stien.
No one feels that more than the French. On Sunday, Aline Chamereau and Clmence Vieira were hit by waves of emotion when the crowd broke out singing the French national anthem.
“(The fans) are far from us, but we are so warm, so close to each other,” Chamereau said after a loss to Germany.
The feeling will only grow. There are seven more sunsets over the Eiffel Tower Stadium for beach volleyball. Then the venue will host blind football in the Paralympic Games.
Then it will be gone.
Back to Champ de Mars.
What’s it like to play beach volleyball in the Eiffel Tower’s shadow? ‘Iconic’
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What’s it like to play beach volleyball in the Eiffel Tower’s shadow? ‘Iconic’
- Beach volleyball’s Olympic history dates back to 1996 and a simple artificial beach stadium in Clayton County Park outside Atlanta
Eddie Howe ‘not 100 percent’ on Newcastle return after pneumonia
- Newcastle boss went into hospital on April 11 after feeling unwell for several days
- He missed his side’s Premier League fixtures against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa
Howe went into hospital on April 11 after feeling unwell for several days and missed his side’s Premier League fixtures against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa.
The 47-year-old, who led Newcastle to their first major trophy in 56 years earlier this season, is not completely recovered but was keen to get back to work with the League Cup winners.
“I’m OK. I’m not 100 percent in my body, but I’d like to think I’m very close to 100 percent in my mind, which is the most important thing,” Howe told reporters on Friday.
“I tried to take a positive from every experience, I think that’s really important to try and do that, but this has been a real challenge because your health, you take for granted.
“I certainly have and when you don’t have the luxury of feeling normal, it can be very difficult.
“I certainly have been through a range of emotions, but thankfully I feel like I’m on the road to recovery, which is the most important thing and I’m delighted to be here.”
Assistant coach Jason Tindall filled in for Howe, securing comprehensive wins over United and Palace before last weekend’s 4-1 loss at Villa.
With fifth-placed Newcastle in the midst of a tense battle to qualify for the Champions League via a top five finish, Howe will be back at St. James’ Park for Saturday’s clash with lowly Ipswich.
“For those first two games, I was watching and involved. I wasn’t feeling well enough to probably enjoy the performances, but a big thank you to the players because they gave everything in those two games to get two massive wins for us,” he said.
“The staff behaved and acted absolutely brilliantly so a real tribute to them and now I’m back I hope I can add something to the group as we go into the last five games.”
Asked if his illness could have become life-threatening without quick action, Howe said: “I’m one of those people, probably like most men, that you sort of go through everything, you don’t necessarily offer yourself to doctors and people but think ‘I’ll be ok in a couple of days, I’ll fight through it’.
“So I was very thankful the doctor here, Paul Catterson, acted quickly because without that quick intervention it could possibly have had a different outcome.”
It will be a while before Howe feels able to join in training with his players, but he is relieved to get back to the daily routine.
“I came back in and it was normal service resumed, probably minus running around,” he said.
“A lot more reserved physically and I think I’m gonna be that way for a while, but certainly back to normal service.”
Sweden’s Duplantis says not ruling out another record at Diamond League opener
- Swedish superstar Armand “Mondo” Duplantis did not rule out another pole vault world record on the eve of his outdoor season opener, a month after the Paris 2024 champion
BEIJING: Swedish superstar Armand “Mondo” Duplantis did not rule out another pole vault world record on the eve of his outdoor season opener, a month after the Paris 2024 champion snagged his third consecutive indoor title in China.
“I never really rule out anything,” he told reporters on the eve of the Diamond League event in the eastern city of Xiamen, adding that he hadn’t checked the conditions for Saturday but felt “really good.”
The 25-year-old set the first of his three world records in 2024 at the Xiamen Egret Stadium, clearing 6.24 meters at his first attempt.
He has since bettered his own mark to 6.27 meters, set at the All Star Perche in Clermont-Ferrand, France, in February after clearing 6.26 meters in Poland and 6.25 meters in Paris before a rapturous Olympic crowd.
He was named the 2025 World Sportsman of the Year on Monday, an honor he shares with Tiger Woods and Usain Bolt.
“It’s quite surreal,” he said.
Duplantis is joined in Xiamen by a star-studded cast that includes nine other world record holders and more than 20 reigning individual champions.
This weekend will also see the return of 200m world champion Shericka Jackson of Jamaica, who missed the chance of gold in Paris due to injury.
“I took some time to get healthy and I’m excited,” said the 30-year-old who will compete in the 200m for the first time since last July.
“I just want to cross the line healthy,” she said.
The 15-meet Diamond League this year is up against Grand Slam Track, which debuted in Kingston this month and runs through to June.
Conceived by former US sprint star Michael Johnson, the four-event series aims to showcase more races between the world’s best runners, sprinters and hurdlers as a way of drawing more eyes to athletics outside Olympic years.
Next week’s Diamond League stop in Shanghai/Suzhou conflicts with Grand Slam’s second meet in Miami.
Norway’s Karsten Warholm, US hurdling star Grant Holloway and Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo of Botswana are among the stars who have committed to back-to-back meets in China instead of Grand Slam.
Also taking to the track on Saturday will be Kenya’s three-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon in the 1,000m, while teammate Beatrice Chebet, a two-time Olympic gold medallist, will face Ethiopia’s 5,000m world record holder — and two-time world champion — Gudaf Tsegay over 5km.
American sprinter Christian Coleman will also begin his outdoor season in Xiamen along with Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the Paris women’s high jump champion.
McLaren to exit Formula E at end of the season
- The reigning Formula One constructors champions said in a statement on Friday that the decision, after three seasons in Formula E with a team racing under the McLaren brand
LONDON: McLaren will leave the all-electric Formula E championship at the end of the 2024-25 season to focus on Formula One, IndyCar and a new hypercar project from 2027 in the World Endurance Championship.
The reigning Formula One constructors champions said in a statement on Friday that the decision, after three seasons in Formula E with a team racing under the McLaren brand, followed a strategic review of activities.
“The time is right to explore other opportunities that more closely align with McLaren Racing’s overall strategic direction — including our 2027 entry into the FIA World Endurance Championship,” said McLaren CEO Zak Brown.
“For now, we are focused on setting this great team up for future success by working toward securing a new owner.”
A Formula E spokesperson raised the possibility of the partnership continuing through next year.
“We recognize that the commercial landscape in motorsport is dynamic and often subject to change,” the spokesperson added. “Despite this development, the team... is already engaged in positive discussions with potential partners and investors.
“We are confident the team will remain a strong presence in the championship, operating under a new identity if required.”
McLaren took over the British-based team from Mercedes when the German carmaker left at the end of 2022 to focus on Formula One.
The team, sponsored by Saudi Arabia’s NEOM, was founded in 2019 and ran separately, under the leadership of Ian James, to McLaren’s Formula One and IndyCar outfits. It is third overall after five rounds.
Formula E puts its global fan base at nearly 400 million.
Liverpool have ‘big responsibility’ to win title at Anfield: Slot
- Arne Slot believes Liverpool have a “big responsibility” to clinch the Premier League title in front of their own fans when Tottenham visit Anfield on Sunday
LONDON: Arne Slot believes Liverpool have a “big responsibility” to clinch the Premier League title in front of their own fans when Tottenham visit Anfield on Sunday.
Slot’s side will be crowned English champions for a record-equalling 20th time if they avoid defeat against struggling Tottenham.
Liverpool have five games left to seal the title and need just one point to do so, making it only a matter of time before they get their hands on the trophy.
The Reds’ last title five years ago was slightly anti-climactic as it came during the Covid-19 pandemic, meaning Anfield was empty when the trophy was presented due to lockdown restrictions.
And, with Liverpool traveling to Chelsea for their next league game after the Tottenham clash, Slot acknowledged there is extra pressure to seal the title on home turf.
“It’s a big responsibility. We are aware that the last time this club won the league was during the Covid time. So everybody is looking forward to Sunday,” Slot told reporters on Friday.
“We know there’s still a job to do. We need at least one point. Our fans know as well. When they come to the stadium they have to support us in the best possible way as they have done all season.
“It’s a nice game to look forward to but also a responsibility we have for Sunday.”
Liverpool nearly secured the title on Wednesday when Arsenal were held to a 2-2 draw by Crystal Palace, who would have wrapped up the trophy for Slot’s men with a victory at the Emirates Stadium.
Slot and his players gathered to watch the Arsenal game in the hope of celebrating together.
Instead, Liverpool sit 12 points clear of Arsenal, who have just four games left, meaning Slot and company are primed to revel in an even more raucous party against Tottenham.
“It was different. Normally when you watch a game of football, you are either alone or with family or friends. But we watched it all together,” Slot said.
“Before the game, I would have been surprised if the game ended in a draw. But during the game, I wasn’t because Crystal Palace again showed what this league is all about.”
Equalling the record of 20 English titles set by bitter rivals Manchester United will add extra verve to Liverpool fans’ celebrations.
In his first season since replacing the beloved Jurgen Klopp, former Feyenoord boss Slot will become the 12th manager to win the Premier League and the first Dutchman.
Asked if he has considered the historic connotations of Liverpool’s imminent triumph, Slot insisted he was focused only on Tottenham.
“No, I get these questions so it comes to your mind but it is the last thing you think of as a manager at this time. We saw last week how hard it was to get a win against a team that was nearly relegated at Leicester,” he said.
“I am not getting carried away. We have faced Tottenham three times and I know how hard it is to beat them.”
It is a mark of Slot’s impressive impact on a team that fell away in Klopp’s final season that Liverpool have been beaten just twice in the league this term.
“This club has to win trophies,” Slot said of the pressure of managing Liverpool. “The good thing is most managers work here a long time so you have a few chances to win trophies.
“You are aware of that but that is not the first thing that you think about when you walk through this door.”
Some critics claim Liverpool have benefited from Manchester City’s steep decline and the injuries that damaged Arsenal’s challenge.
But Slot said: “Everybody can have their own opinion. You might have a different opinion. That is the nice thing about the world we are living in. I am only here for a year so I can only tell you what I experienced.
“It has never been as hard to end up in the top four or five. In my opinion it is a really difficult league.
Bayern Munich keeping title talk to a minimum ahead of Mainz game, coach says
- The Bavarians, eight points clear with four matches left, could seal their 34th league crown with a win over Mainz should second-placed Bayer Leverkusen fail to beat Augsburg
MUNICH: No one at Bayern Munich is even talking about a potential Bundesliga title win in Saturday’s home game against Mainz 05, coach Vincent Kompany said on Friday.
The Bavarians, eight points clear with four matches left, could seal their 34th league crown with a win over Mainz should second-placed Bayer Leverkusen fail to beat Augsburg.
“I only prepare for the Mainz game. Only the game is important, those 90 minutes,” Kompany told a press conference when asked about planning for potential title celebrations.
“All those scenarios are not yet in my head.
“We lost against Mainz (earlier in the season). The way I know my team is that the motivation is so big for tomorrow,” he said. “We know the qualities of Mainz, but our motivation is so high that we will be look at our own qualities.”
Bayern head of sport Max Eberl echoed the coach’s views, saying it was still too early to celebrate.
“Bayern can earn their 34th German league title,” Eberl said. “It would be my first. But I don’t want to hear anything (about celebration planning). When we achieve it then we will start but I don’t want to hear anything about it now.”
Thomas Mueller, who will be leaving at the end of the season after 25 years at the club, could make his 500th league appearance for the side, though he did not train on Thursday due to illness.
“Thomas was a bit sick. But I hope he is back in training today and will be there tomorrow,” Kompany said.
The Bavarians, who last season saw Leverkusen win the domestic league and Cup double, will also be competing for the title at the 32-team Club World Cup in the United States starting in June.
The winners will earn up to $125 million, according to world soccer’s governing body FIFA.
“The Club World cup is the first time with such a format and both sporting and financially extremely lucrative,” Eberl said.
“We go there to win the title and if we can generate revenues then that is wonderful.”
