Kloth/Nuss and Åhman/Hellvig Triumph at Espinho Elite16
With just two months remaining before the Paris Olympics, Team USA’s Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss, along with Sweden’s David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig, made a statement by claiming gold at the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Espinho Elite16 on Sunday.
The Praia da Baía event was the fourth of seven Elite16 tournaments leading up to the Olympic Games and featured one of the strongest fields of the season, with nearly all top international beach volleyball teams in attendance.
Kloth/Nuss Claim Sixth Beach Pro Tour Gold
Kloth, 27, and Nuss, 26, secured their sixth Beach Pro Tour title and first of 2024 with a dramatic comeback victory over Switzerland’s Nina Brunner and Tanja Hüberli. The Americans triumphed 2-1 (17-21, 28-26, 15-10), saving six match points in the second set before closing out the win in the tie-breaker.
“This is absolutely unreal,” Nuss told Volleyball World. “It was such a battle. We always seem to go to three sets against that Swiss team—they’re phenomenal athletes. Playing in this packed stadium with this atmosphere means so much to us.”
The bronze medal match saw Dutch duo Raisa Schoon and Katja Stam defeat Spain’s Daniela Álvarez and Tania Moreno 2-0 (21-18, 21-12). Schoon and Stam celebrated their second podium finish of the season, having previously won silver in Tepic, Mexico, in April.
Åhman/Hellvig Dominate Men’s Field
Reigning European champions Åhman and Hellvig demonstrated their mastery of the windy conditions in Espinho, defeating Germany’s Nils Ehlers and Clemens Wickler 2-0 (21-16, 21-13) in the final.
Ranked No. 1 in the FIVB World Rankings, the Swedish duo claimed their eighth Beach Pro Tour title in just three seasons. Their victory in Espinho marked their second consecutive Elite16 gold, following their triumph in Tepic in April. The pair now boasts a 17-2 win record for the 2024 season.
“It feels great to win gold again,” Hellvig said. “We lost a match in pool play, but we came through some really tough battles. I’m super happy with our performance.”
Brazilians Andre Loyola and George Wanderley took bronze after a hard-fought 2-0 (21-15, 30-28) victory over Dutch duo Steven van de Velde and Matthew Immers. The result secured their fourth Beach Pro Tour medal of the season and their third consecutive podium finish after claiming silver in Brasília and bronze in Tepic.
Road to Paris Continues
Following the Espinho Elite16, the Beach Pro Tour moves to Stare Jablonki, Poland, from May 30 to June 2, marking the return of international beach volleyball to the city for the first time since 2014. The final event of the Olympic qualification period will take place in Ostrava, Czechia, from June 5-9, where another Elite16 tournament will finalize the standings before Paris.
