Day 10 – Monday 16 October

Australia’s Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar have finished fourth at the Beach Volleyball World Championships earlier today in Mexico.

The duo came out firing in the bronze medal playoff against USA’s Kristen Nuss and Taryn Kloth, winning the opening set 21-15. 

There was nothing separating the two sides in the second set and while the Aussies looked close to clutching the match and the bronze medal, the USA fought back in the dying moments to push the match into a third with a 19-21 scoreline.

The Aussies were unable to find their rhythm in the deciding set, with the USA taking home the medal with a 15-8 win in the third.  

While the Olympic silver medallists were disappointed to narrowly miss the podium, they are pleased with the steps they are taking with just under 12 months until the Paris Olympics.

Dual Olympian Taliqua Clancy said while they wanted to go home with the medal, their major goal is the Paris Olympic Games next year.

“It obviously feels a little bittersweet at the moment but I’m so incredibly proud of our team, especially Mariafe because of all the challenges we’ve had this event,” said Clancy. “It’s just amazing that we were still just able to deliver such high quality volleyball even though we weren’t able to turn things our way this time.

“I think it’s a really exciting step when you look forward to Paris next year.”

Artacho del Solar didn’t have the greatest lead-in to today’s medal match, fighting off a bacterial infection. But she said thanks to the great teamwork, she was still so happy with the high quality volleyball they were able to deliver. 

“Unfortunately I came down with some bacterial infection but I’m super proud of our team – ’T’ really stuck by my side and really stepped up and I couldn’t ask for anything more than that,” she said.

“We stuck really strong and I’m really proud of what were able to deliver in the situation and to have still made it to the last day, we can’t ask for anything more.

“We go home knowing that we’re on the right track and it’s all about the process towards our big goal in Paris next year.”

With the next big focus turning towards the Olympic Games, Clancy said the past ten days has firmed the march towards qualification and built more confidence in their ability to survive the format of the event.

“World Champs is a really great qualifying step, we have really good points here, so that’s a really great result for us and will really help because there’s not many more tournaments until the next calendar year,” said Clancy.

“Another really, really great step forward and this is honestly the only event that compares to the Olympics – the format and how it runs – so it’s a really good experience to see where things are at and I think we just have to be so proud of what we were able to deliver.”

Following Paris, the next Beach Volleyball World Championships will be held in Adelaide, with a handover ceremony taking place at the conclusion of the event in Tlaxcala. Artacho del Solar is already looking forward to 2025 and the opportunities it will create for beach volleyball in Australia.

“Definitely very excited to have the World Champs at home,” she said. “It’s such a big event and to have such a big event like that in Australia, it’s going to be so good for the growth of our sport.”

Day 9 – Sunday 15 October

Australia’s Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar are through to the bronze medal playoff of the Beach Volleyball World Championships in Mexico. 

With just under 12 months to go until the Paris Olympic Games, the Aussie duo will be chasing a podium finish as well as valuable world ranking spots ahead of Olympic qualification. 

After tonight’s 0:2 (17-21, 14-21) loss to current defending World Champions Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Santos Lisboa, the Aussies will have another opportunity for a medal in tomorrow’s match.

They are set to face USA’s Kristen Nuss and Taryn Kloth in tomorrow’s bronze medal playoff, in what is tipped to be a close battle.

Olympic silver medalist Clancy said while they were disappointed with tonight’s loss, they are determined to finish on a high with a bronze medal. 

“Definitely disappointed at the moment, but it’s incredible that we have another opportunity tomorrow,” she said.  “It’s nice that now we have the experience on the [Tlaxcala Bullring] court, we can definitely grow and be better.

“There’s more space for us to perform and another opportunity, so time to recover and reset and get on that podium,” she said. 

The Aussies have faced off against the USA on a number of occasions, and Clancy said they’ll be ready for a tough encounter. 

“We’ve had some really great battles against Kloth/Nuss so we definitely know that it’s going to be a long battle which I’m actually excited for,” said Clancy. “It’s awesome we have another opportunity to play here and we definitely don’t want to take that for granted.

“It feels really special to have crowds again, I feel like that’s something that me and Mariafe missed over that COVID time when we got to play in those big events so it’s really special to have the fans around and have another opportunity to be in there tomorrow.” 

The Aussies will now regroup ahead of the bronze medal playoff taking on the USA on Monday 16 October at 6:15am AEDT with all action live on volleyballworld.com.

Monday 16 October Schedule – Bronze Medal Match

6:15am AEDT Clancy/Artacho del Solar (AUS) vs Nuss/Kloth (USA)

>> Head-to-head: Nuss/Kloth lead 5-3
 – 22/5/22 Nuss/Kloth d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2-1 – Challenge, Kusadasi TUR
 – 3/12/22 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Nuss/Kloth 2-1 – Elite16, Torquay AUS
 – 27/1/23 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Nuss/Kloth 2-0 – Beach Pro Tour Final, Doha QAT
 – 24/3/23 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Nuss/Kloth 2-0 – Elite16, Tepic MEX
 – 30/4/23 Nuss/Kloth d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2-1 – Elite16, Uberlandia BRA
 – 3/6/23 Nuss/Kloth d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2-1 – Elite16, Ostrava CZE
 – 8/7/23 Nuss/Kloth d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2-0 – Elite16, Gstaad SUI
 – 28/9/23 Nuss/Kloth d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2-0 – Elite16, Paris FRA

Day 8 – Saturday 14 October

Tokyo Olympic silver medalists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar are one step closer to a medal at the World Beach Volleyball Championships, after today booking their spot in the semi final in Mexico. 

The Aussie duo won their quarter final 2:0 (22-20, 21-16) against Canada’s Brandie Wilkerson and Melissa Humana-Paredes, in front of an enthusiastic local crowd who threw their support behind the Australians. 

It’s familiar territory for the team, who won the bronze medal at the 2019 World Championships. 

Clancy, a dual Olympian, said they are ecstatic to advance through to the semi final. 

“It feels really incredible, it’s where we want to be and we get to enjoy the vibes of another potential podium at a World Champs,” she said.

“We definitely don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves, just want to keep the same routine that Mariafe and I always go through so [we’ll] enjoy the moment right now and know that we have two more matches ahead of us.” 

In the first set, there was nothing separating the two sides, but the Aussies managed to grind out a 22-20 win. Determined not to lose momentum, they dominated from the start of the second set and were able to hold their nerve to secure the win 21-16. 

“It was definitely really important to reset at the end of the first set because we know they’re [Canada] such a great team,” said Clancy.

“We haven’t played Brandie [Wilkerson] so much, we’ve played Mel [Melissa Humana-Paredes] so many times, so we know she’s going to come out and bring the heat so we knew that we just had to be patient and trust our process. 

“We were lucky enough to get a great lead right at the start but we knew that we just had to keep bringing that same focus every point. 

“I always say the Olympics and World Champs is definitely a marathon, not a sprint, so it’s just having the patience, playing one point at a time because everyone’s just so amazing. You’ve just got to really trust what you have worked on and believe in the team.”

The Aussies will now face defending champions and top-seeds Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Santos Lisboa from Brazil on Sunday 15 October at 1:00pm AEDT. Both teams have three wins apiece from their six head-to-head encounters, with the Australians winning their last encounter earlier this year in Brazil.

Sunday 15 October Schedule – Semi Final

1pm AEDT Clancy/Artacho del Solar (AUS) vs Ana Patrícia/Duda (BRA)
>> Head-to-head: 3-3
 – 27/5/22 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Ana Patrícia/Duda 2:0 – Elite16, Ostrava CZE
 – 27/1/23 Ana Patrícia/Duda d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2:0 – Beach Pro Tour Finals, Doha QAT
 – 29/1/23 Ana Patrícia/Duda d Artacho del Solar/Clancy 2:1 – Beach Pro Tour Finals, Doha QAT
 – 4/2/23 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Ana Patrícia/Duda 2:1 – Elite16, Doha QAT
 – 25/3/23 Ana Patrícia/Duda d Artacho del Solar 2:0 – Elite16, Tepic MEX
 – 30/4/23 Artacho del Solar/Clancy d Ana Patrícia/Duda 2:0 – Elite16, Uberlandia BRA

Day 7 – Friday 13 October

Tokyo Olympic silver medallists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar have booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the Beach Volleyball World Championships in Tlaxcala, Mexico. 

After a topping their pool and winning yesterday’s round of 32 match, the fifth seeds were pushed all the way by Italian 10th seeds Valentina Gottardi and Marta Menegatti before triumphing 2:1 (21-18, 15-21, 15-11).

With the medal playoffs just one match away, Clancy said the team are thrilled to have kept their World Championship dreams alive.

“It feels great to get the win,” she said. “Italy is a great team so we knew we had to put in a good performance.

“It’s nice to enjoy this moment and then we will reset for tomorrow.

“The World Champs is a marathon, not a sprint and we want to be here at the end.”

They will now face the fourth-seeded Canadian pairing of Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson in the quarter-finals.

The teams have played each other twice on the Beach Pro Tour already this year with one win apiece.

Seven of the top eight seeds remain alive in the women’s draw.

Clancy and Artacho del Solar are the only Aussies still in the mix, after Zachery Schubert and Tom Hodges went down in today’s round of 16 match.

The Asian Champions will take away a share of ninth place from their first World Championships after falling to the American team of Travis Crabb and Theodore Brunner 0:2 (17-21, 17-21). 

Saturday 14 October Schedule – Quarter Final

11am AEDT Clancy/Artacho del Solar (AUS) vs Melissa/Brandie (CAN)
>> Head-to-head: 1-1
 – 7/7/23 Artacho del Solar d Melissa/Brandie 2:1 – Elite16, Gstaad SUI
 – 29/7/23 Melissa/Brandie d Artacho del Solar 2:0 – Elite16, Montreal CAN

Day 6 – Thursday 12 October

Australia still have two teams alive at the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships, with one team remaining in both the men’s and women’s draws.

Olympic silver medallists Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy were the first Australian team in action today, taking on Germany’s Sandra Ittlinger and Karla Borger at the Bullring in Apizaco.

The Germans were out of the blocks fastest, rushing to a 5-1 lead before Australia won six of the next eight points to square the set up at seven-all. The two sides went point for point until 15-all when the Australians went back-to-back to gain a two-point advantage. 

The two sides continued to trade points until Australia won the set 21-19.

The second set was another arm wrestle but it was the Australians who gained a 10-7 lead early on, only for the Germans to lock the set up. Australia quickly gained back a two-point advantage which they maintained through to match point at 20-18. Germany managed to not only level up the match but even earned a set point of their own 22-21. 

However Artacho del Solar and Clancy reeled off four of the next five points to take the set 25-23 and book their place in the World Championships round of 16 for the third straight time.

“It feels good – every game we’re just trying to get a bit better and better and I think that was definitely another step forward,” said Clancy. “We know now that every game is going to be super tough – we’re facing the best competition now.

“I’m really just proud of our progression and effort today.”

Artacho del Solar and Clancy will meet Italian 10th seeds Valentina Gottardi and Marta Menegatti tomorrow.

The two sides have met twice already this season in Elite16 tournaments with Australia winning the bronze medal match in Mexico while the Italians won their pool clash in Paris. 

The first Australian men’s team on court saw Tom Hodges and Zac Schubert taking on Canada’s Samuel Schachter and Daniel Dearing on the bullring in Huamantla. 

From 6-5 up, the Aussies won five of the next six points to clear out to an 11-6 lead. While both sides enjoyed runs of points for the remainder of the set, Australia was able to maintain the five-point advantage to win 21-16.

The second set was a torrid affair but one which will fill Hodges and Schubert with the belief that they can win from anywhere.

Down 9-15, the Aussies won four straight points to get the set almost back on even terms before Canada earned their first set point at 20-19. Australia saved that one, however when Canada went up again 21-20, Hodges and Schubert claimed four of the next five points to win 24-22 and enter the round of 16 at their first-ever World Championships.

“It’s crazy – we were down six points or something like that at one stage so for us to get back to equal… we were like ‘we’ve just got to keep going’,” said Schubert. “Keep going for it, back our game in – we know what we can do and if it doesn’t come off, it doesn’t come off but we know if we put our mindset fully to the process then it always does and we did that well today.”

Hodges and Schubert will now take on USA’s Trevor Crabb and Theodore Brunner after they accounted for Chris McHugh and Paul Burnett in Huamantla.

The Americans were dominant throughout the match, winning the opening point of each set and never trailing at any stage.

Schubert and Hodges have never played the American pair before but they’ll meet in Huamantla at 11am AEDT (Friday).

Friday 13 October Schedule – Round of 16

11:00am AEDT Clancy/Artacho del Solar (AUS) vs Gottardi/Menegatti (ITA)
11:00am AEDT Hodges/Schubert (AUS) v Crabb/Brunner (USA)

Day 4 – Tuesday 10 October

All four Australian teams are still alive at the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Mexico following the completion of the pool stage today.

Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy finished on top of Pool E after their third straight win, accounting for Polish 20th seeds Jagoda Gruszczynska and Aleksandra Wachowicz 2:0 (21-18, 21-16).

“Happy to have topped our pool with a solid performance against Poland,” said Artacho del Solar. “Now the tournament begins!

“Day off tomorrow to rest and recover and ready to go again for the next phase of the tournament.”

The pair are set now set to meet Sandra Ittlinger and Karla Borger in the round of 32 after the Germans progressed as one of the four best third-place teams.

Tom Hodges and Zac Schubert are also through to the Round of 32 despite going down to Sweden’s second seeds David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig 0:2 (11-21, 22-24). The result saw the Aussies finish second in Pool B.

“We had a good battle against one of the best teams in the world today,” said Schubert. “Didn’t quite make it in the first set but we found some rhythm and some good sideout pressure building into the second. It’s just a bit of a pity we couldn’t hold on a bit longer.

“We’re still in the tournament, we finished second in the pool and we’re really looking forward to the round of 32 coming up because the tournament’s still alive and we’re ready to fight hard.”

The team will now play No.36 seeds Samuel Schachter and Daniel Dearing from Canada.

Hodges and Schubert join the women’s team in earning a day off tomorrow but there will still be two Australian teams in action on day five.

Mark Nicolaidis and Izac Carracher can still emulate their top 10 performance from Rome last year after beating Thailand’s Pithak Tipjan and Poravid Taovato 2:0 (21-18, 21-9).

“We’ve played them a couple times now and we know them from the Asian tour so we know them very well and they know us very well,” said Carracher. “We really had to scrap in the first set – they really brought it. We made a couple errors and they made some really good plays but the second set we cracked it open with, finally, some good defensive pressure and we backed up with some sideouts.

“It’s really nice to get a win on the board and to make it through to the next round. The tournament’s wide open now and we’re into the knockout phase and that’s all that really matters.

The result placed the Australians third in their pool and set up showdown in the Lucky Losers round against Polish 30th seeds Piotr Kantor and Jakub Zdybek.

Joining Carracher and Nicolaidis in the Lucky Losers round tomorrow are Chris McHugh and Paul Burnett who claimed their first win of the tournament against Mexico’s Jorge Barajas and Gabriel Cruz Mendoza 2:0 (21-17, 23-21). Tomorrow they play Portugal’s Joao Pedrosa and Hugo Campos who they defeated for the bronze medal at the Beach Pro Tour Challenge in Torquay last November.

 “Firstly, just really happy to get a win and get out of the pool,” said McHugh. “A tough battle – Mexico really took it to us ands challenged us all the way through both sets.

“Happy to grind it out and keen to step it up in the elimination rounds.”

McHugh said the opportunity to play in front of a parochial crowd was one he’ll remember.

“Centre court, playing Mexico – home team – always great fun. This is World Championships and Tlaxcala’s really getting around it, showing the beauty of beach volleyball and how much fun you can have playing, even in the tense times you’ve just got to soak it in, it’s a great atmosphere – you can’t ask for anything better.”

Wedneday 11 October Schedule – Lucky Losers Round

6:00am AEDT – Nicolaidis/Carracher (AUS) v Kantor/Zdybek (POL)
7:00am AEDT McHugh/Burnett (AUS) v Pedrosa/Campos (POR)

Day 3 – Monday 9 October

All four Australian teams were in action on day three of competition at the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Mexico with two victories recorded.

Olympic silver medalists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar backed up their opening day win another victory, coming from a set down to defeat Spain’s Liliana Fernández Steiner and Paula Soria Gutiérrez 2:1 (17-21, 21-17, 15-6).

“It was a good game for us where we stayed patient, trusted the process and got the win,” said Artacho del Solar. “Rest and recover now and prep for tomorrow against Poland.”

Earlier in the day, Asian Champions Tom Hodges and Zac Schubert beat Dany Jair Leon Nieves and Marcos Jose Tenorio Angulo 2:0 (21-19, 21-11) to remain undefeated.

Despite the Ecuador team being ranked number 98 in the world, the Australians didn’t take their opponents lightly and it paid off as the match went on.

“Every team can play amazing volleyball at this level,” said Schubert “We stuck to our process and backed each other in which allowed us to win the tight first set.

“We also continued our process throughout the second.”

They now take on world #2 pair David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig in their final pool match.

“Sweden is one of the top teams here and we are looking forward to a high quality match tomorrow,” added Schubert.

In the evening session, Australia’s two other men’s team fell to their second losses of the tournament.

Mark Nicolaidis and Izac Carracher went down to their second Dutch opponent in as many days, falling to 2013 World Champions and 2016 Olympic bronze medallists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeusen 0:2 (18-21, 21-23). 

Chris McHugh and Paul Burnett went down to Italy’s Samuele Cottafava and Paolo Nicolai 0:2 (18-21, 18-21) in one of the final matches of the day.

All Australian teams will play again on day four which will complete the pool stage and determine who progresses to the round of 32 and lucky loser rounds.

Monday 9 October Schedule

2:00am AEDT Pool E – Mariafe/Clancy (AUS) v Gruszczynska/Wachowicz (POL)
3:00am AEDT Pool B – Åhman/Hellvig (SWE) v Hodges/Schubert (AUS)
9:30am AEDT Pool J – Nicolaidis/Carracher (AUS) v Pithak/Poravid (THA)
1:00pm AEDT Pool H – McHugh/Burnett (AUS) v Barajas/Cruz (MEX)

Day 2 – Sunday 8 October

Sunday’s action saw another two Aussies in action at the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Mexico with our women’s team amongst the line up.

Olympic silver medalists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar started their World Championships strongly.

The duo delivered a 2:0 (21-16), (21-12) over Dominican Republic’s Almanzar/Payano.

Artacho del Solar commented post match “Game one was a great start to the World Championships. T and I found our rhythm and now we will look to build for our game against Spain.”

Clancy echoed her teammate’s comments adding: “Great to start the tournament off with a win. Excited for another opportunity tomorrow to step back on the court and keep progressing our game.”

In the men’s competition, Mark Nicolaidis and Izac Carracher did quite hope the start they were hoping for, going down to The Netherland’s Immers/van de Velde 0:2 (12-21, 15-21). The duo will look to regroup quickly as they back up on day three against another formidable Netherland’s side.

Monday’s action will see all four Australian teams in action is what is set to be a blockbuster day of competition.

Monday 9 October Schedule

2:00am AEDT Pool B I Hodges/Schubert (AUS) v Leon/Marcos (ECU)
8:30am AEDT Pool E I Mariafe/Clancy (AUS) v Liliana/Paula (ESP)
9:30am AEDT Pool J I Brouwer/Meeuwsen (NED) v Nicolaidis/Carracher
1:00pm AEDT Pool H I Cottafava/Nicolai (ITA) v McHugh/Burnett

Day 1 – Saturday 7 October

The first day of competition at the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Mexico saw two of our Aussie Men’s team kick start the Australians campaign. 

Thomas Hodges & Zachery Schubert got things underway in a winning fashion, defeating Portugal’s Pedrosa/Campos 2-0 (21-18, 21-18). 

The Aussie duo came into the World Championships ranked in 10th place, looking comfortable against the 28th ranked Portugal side. 

Hodges said they were thrilled to be able to start the World Championships campaign in style.

“It’s great to get the first game, and first win under the belt here in Mexico. 

“The atmosphere is already amazing, with the stadiums being packed on day one. 

“Tomorrow we have a rest day before taking on Sweden and Ecuador in the following days to round out pool stages,” he said. 

Unfortunately for Commonwealth Games gold medalists Chris McHugh and Paul Burnett, it wasn’t quite the start they were hoping for doing down to Spain’s Herrera/Gavira (ESP) 0:2 (20-22, 13-21). They will have plenty of opportunity to keep their World Championship hopes alive.

Both sides have two more pool matches left and will turn their attention to those. 

Click here for draws and results

Day 2 action will see more Aussies taking centre stage. 

Sunday 8 October Schedule

8:30am AEDT – Artacho del Solar & Clancy (AUS) vs Almanzar/Payano (DOM)
9:30am AEDT – Nicolaidis & Carracher (AUS) vs Immers/van de Velde (NED)

The event will be streamed LIVE on volleyballworld.tv