How the 2020 Olympic postponement could impact each team in the race

How the 2020 Olympic postponement could impact each team in the race

On Tuesday morning, what seemed to be the inevitable alas became a reality: The 2020 Olympic Games were postponed, to sometime in 2021. For some, it’s heartbreaking.

“I can understand why other people are devastated,” said Sarah Sponcil, who is third in the Olympic race with Kelly Claes. “They waited literally four years and now they have to wait five.”

Notice that Sponcil said “others” when mentioning those who are devastated. For some, the Olympic postponement is devastating. For others, it’s a blessing not even in disguise: It’s just a blessing.

This week on SANDCAST: Beach volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, we discussed, among a number of covid-19-related topics – is there anything else to discuss at this point, anyway? – how each team in the Olympic race could benefit or set them back from the postponement. We dug into how, depending on the FIVB schedule and any changes the IOC makes regarding the qualification process, the postponement could put additional teams in the race.

Here’s a team by team breakdown of the impact the postponement could have.

Women

April Ross, Alix Klineman

U.S.A. rank: 1

Points: 8,760

This one is difficult to pin down whether it hurts or benefits. On the one hand, Ross and Klineman were coming off their best season together, with five AVP finals in five tournaments and three wins on the world tour. They could have continued that upwards trajectory all the way to Tokyo. On the other hand, it gives Klineman another year to develop on the beach, which she has done at such a rate you’d be forgiven to think she hasn’t been playing on the AVP her entire volleyball career. It’s a bit neutral for these two, who are still all but a lock to go to Tokyo, no matter what year the Games are held. They didn’t seem to be in a hurry to play this year as it was, as they decided not to play in the Cancun four-star that was eventually cancelled, so perhaps this will be a good rest period to heal up the nagging injuries that build up.

Until then, you can find Ross going viral with what has become the April Ross Challenge.

Kerri Walsh Jennings, Brooke Sweat

U.S.A. rank: 2

Points: 6,960

The immediate reaction when thinking of these two is that it would have to negatively impact them. But the more one would think about it, the more that might not be entirely accurate. Yes, Walsh Jennings and Sweat are on the older side of the athletic spectrum, at 41 and 33 years old, respectively. Yes, they have quite a list of injuries and surgeries on the ledger. But Sponcil said it best: “Kerri is a machine,” she said on Tuesday. “She’s just going to keep going all out.”

If there is one athlete in the world who can take this and benefit from it, it might be Walsh Jennings, whose three gold medals and five Olympic appearances did not come by accident. That, and she gets time at home, with her family, when she would otherwise be circumnavigating the world.

Sarah Sponcil, Kelly Claes

U.S.A. rank: 3

Points: 6,640

There are two teams that I really don’t see any downside to this: Sponcil and Claes, and Kelley Larsen and Emily Stockman. For these two, it’s all upside.

“Everyone’s been asking how we feel about it and I feel great because the last year I’ve just been like ‘Ok, let’s get as many points as we can, let’s pass Kerri, it’s crunch time,’” Sponcil said. “It would have been crunch time right now and now I have the time to process the opportunity I have in front of me. I’m trying my hardest to slow down and be like ‘Whoa this is an amazing opportunity having another year to get experience, to slow down a little bit, and take it all in.’ It’s the best thing for our team and for me personally.”

It gives them more time to develop, both as players and professionals, and it allows them, as Sponcil mentioned, to finally slow down. Catch a breath. Sleep for a change. Sponcil has been competing at a breakneck pace for the previous few years, going from UCLA to the AVP then back to UCLA straight into the Olympic race. A break could be just what she needed. It could be exactly what the team needed.

Kelley Larsen, Emily Stockman

U.S.A. rank: 4

Points: 6,080

It is positively bananas that the fourth-ranked U.S. team is also the seventh-ranked team on the planet. America is deep. When you’re as good as Stockman and Larsen are, and you’re behind in the race, time and more events are what you need, and time and hopefully more events is what they’ll get. If they have a dozen more events to climb the ladder and take the second American spot, as they could, depending when the FIVB reschedules its laundry list of postponed events, they could very well do so. Their win in Warsaw proved they can compete with any team in the world. They just need some more time to do so. Now, they might have that time.

Men

Taylor Crabb, Jake Gibb

U.S.A. rank: 1

Points: 6,680

It is hard to imagine how another year added to Gibb’s career would be a positive for these two, but it’s also hard to imagine how Gibb played some of his best volleyball at age 43 as he did in 2019. He, like Phil Dalhausser and John Hyden, have hoarded a gallon from the fountain of youth and just continue to defy athletic norms. For Crabb, it’s just another year to get better. With his trajectory the way it is – a sharp incline upwards – the postponement isn’t going to do any harm. Perhaps this will be a useful rest period for Gibb, a bit of a sabbatical before one final charge in 2021.

Tri Bourne, Trevor Crabb

U.S.A. rank: 2

Points: 6,360

Like Sponcil and Claes, and Larsen and Stockman, this is another team where it’s almost only upside. They held a slim lead over Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena for the second spot, slim enough where it was basically a tie. But now Bourne and Crabb have another year to dial in their team dynamic, which both admit they’re only just beginning to figure out. Bourne can dial in his world-class blocking again, while both can dig into the nuances of defense and different roles in transition. It’s inconvenient for anyone to have to wait another year, but as this is this only team where age is not a factor at all, there isn’t much downside to the postponement for Bourne and Crabb.

Phil Dalhausser, Nick Lucena

U.S.A. rank: 3

Points: 5,840

It is impossible to say how this will impact Dalhausser and Lucena. Dalhausser has readily admitted that Tokyo was it for him. Then it was onto family time and working at his new facility in Orlando, Fla. This news obviously pushes that timeline back. Like Walsh Jennings, though, it could just mean more time at home with their families for what could be the remainder of the year. They live close enough to one another that practicing won’t be a burden. If there isn’t another meaningful event until, say, August, maybe later, that’s another five months at home they otherwise wouldn’t have had. It could be exactly what they need, or it could be difficult to sustain the motivation needed to make an Olympic push for another year and a half.

Time will only tell. And time is exactly what we have in abundance.

Episoder(500)

Road to Paris: 10 Events, 3 Months, 1 Last Sprint for the Olympics

Road to Paris: 10 Events, 3 Months, 1 Last Sprint for the Olympics

Welcome back to the Road to Paris! Travis Mewhirter previews the final three months of the Olympic qualification cycle, which is about to begin with this week's Doha Elite16. Doha kicks off a sprint of the next three months, which feature 10 events on four continents. On this episode: - Travis provides a statistical analysis projecting the odds for every team remaining in the race - Why Tri Bourne and Chaim Schalk still have a 7.9% shot at qualifying - Explains why the top 13 men's teams, and top 12 women's teams, are safe and pretty much a done deal - Why the Swiss, German, and Canadian women's races are the most interesting And much more. So fun to be back chatting about the Olympic race! Stoked for one more year of the Road to Paris! FULL PROBABILITIES CAN BE FOUND HERE: https://sandcastvolleyball.com/olympic-beach-volleyball-probabilities-for-every-team-remaining-in-the-race-to-paris/ SHOOTS! *** Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball SANDCAST and Bartender in a Box invite you and 12 of your friends to enjoy just one Box of their Premium Bar Quality Libations for around $20 bucks.  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon! We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

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28 Feb 20241h 22min

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John Mayer Is Coaching His Brains Out -- And Winning Big

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball With Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features one of our favorite coaches in the world: John Mayer. As a player, Mayer was one of the best defenders of his generation, the 2015 AVP Defensive Player of the Year and the 2015 AVP MVP. Since 2018, he has been a full-time coach, leading the LMU Beach Volleyball team to new heights: four straight WCC Championships, four straight WCC Coach of the Year honors, and three consecutive berths in to the NCAA Championship. Not bad for, as Mayer says, “little LMU.” We talk all about that rise, as well as: Mayer’s unique coaching style that is less top down and more experimental How he has changed as a coach since he took over LMU in 2015 LMU’s meteoric rise from a winless program to one of the best in the country How diving into motor learning and ecological coaching has shifted his perspective on teaching, coaching, and leadership And so, so much more. Cannot recommend this episode enough! SHOOTS! *** Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball SANDCAST and Bartender in a Box invite you and 12 of your friends to enjoy just one Box of their Premium Bar Quality Libations for around $20 bucks.  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon! We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

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Dain Blanton, Megan Kraft, Delaynie Maple and USC are gunning for four straight titles

Dain Blanton, Megan Kraft, Delaynie Maple and USC are gunning for four straight titles

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7 Feb 20241h 10min

UCLA Beach Volleyball's Big Three Are Hunting An NCAA Championship

UCLA Beach Volleyball's Big Three Are Hunting An NCAA Championship

The UCLA Beach Volleyball team has been one of the most dominant in the young history of NCAA Beach Volleyball. Three of its four decorated seniors – Jaden Whitmarsh, Devon Newberry, Lexy Denaburg – came on SANDCAST to chat about the last dance for this group, and how much winning the elusive NCAA Championship would mean, especially in a transition year with a new head coach in Jenny Johnson Jordan. We covered a wide variety of topics, including: What the program is like under Johnson Jordan in her first year as head coach, replacing Stein Metzger Why the word “special” continued to come up in conversation when talking about the 2024 team Why Whitmarsh, a sixth-year, decided to return for one final ride The lessons you can learn from coming one win shy of an NCAA Championship And so much more! SHOOTS! *** Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball SANDCAST and Bartender in a Box invite you and 12 of your friends to enjoy just one Box of their Premium Bar Quality Libations for around $20 bucks.  Get 20% Off and Free Shipping with the code SANDCAST at Manscaped.com. That’s 20% off with free shipping at manscaped.com and use code SANDCAST.  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon! We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

31 Jan 20241h 10min

Betsi Flint: The Supermom of Professional Beach Volleyball

Betsi Flint: The Supermom of Professional Beach Volleyball

Betsi Flint is, at 31 years old, somehow a veteran on the AVP and Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour, a seven-time AVP champion who is currently ranked in the top 10 in the world alongside Julia Scoles. But she is far more than another talented defender. Flint occupies a rare space in the world of beach volleyball: A mom who continues to make her full-time living playing the sport. We chatted quite a bit about mom life, as well as: The difficulty of timing a pregnancy for a female athlete Flint and Scoles’ Cinderella run through the 2023 AVP Manhattan Beach Open Coming back and playing five matches in the first day of her first tournament post-partum – five months after giving birth The dark arts of the Betsi Flint float serve And, as always, a whole lot more. SHOOTS! *** Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball SANDCAST and Bartender in a Box invite you and 12 of your friends to enjoy just one Box of their Premium Bar Quality Libations for around $20 bucks.  Get 20% Off and Free Shipping with the code SANDCAST at Manscaped.com. That’s 20% off with free shipping at manscaped.com and use code SANDCAST.  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon! We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

24 Jan 20241h 1min

Cody Caldwell's Beach Volleyball Career Is Thriving On Fun

Cody Caldwell's Beach Volleyball Career Is Thriving On Fun

Cody Caldwell is one of the faster-rising talents in beach volleyball, both on the AVP and Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour. After playing indoors in Greece and France, Caldwell decided to “try my hand on the beach,” and the results have been promising, with three career Tour Series wins and three third place finishes in 2023 alone. All of this has been done with one goal in mind: Fun – and he’s maximizing it and thriving because of it. We chat about: Why Caldwell decided to switch to beach in spite of his talents indoors that could command big contracts overseas What it’s like playing with Seain Cook, whom Caldwell thinks is the most entertaining player on the AVP Tour How it felt to beat both Alison and Phil Dalhausser at the Manhattan Beach Open Why he has his eyes set on Los Angeles 2028, and how he envisions getting there And, as always, much, much more. SHOOTS! *** Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball SANDCAST and Bartender in a Box invite you and 12 of your friends to enjoy just one Box of their Premium Bar Quality Libations for around $20 bucks.  Get 20% Off and Free Shipping with the code SANDCAST at Manscaped.com. That’s 20% off with free shipping at manscaped.com and use code SANDCAST.  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon! We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

17 Jan 20241h 18min

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