In the final pool matches of the men’s Olympic beach volleyball tournament on Thursday at the Eiffel Tower Stadium, Italy’s Samuele Cottafava & Paolo Nicolai and the USA’s Miles Partain & Andrew Benesh scored significant victories to advance to the Round of 16. Italy’s Cottafava & Nicolai defeated Sweden’s top-seeded David Ahman & Jonatan Hellvig 2-0, while the USA’s Partain & Benesh overcame Brazil’s George Wanderley & Andre Stein 2-1. Both Swedish and Brazilian teams now face the possibility of competing in the “lucky-loser” round.
Earlier, Qatar’s Cherif Younousse & Ahmed Tijan clinched first place in Pool A with a 2-0 win over Australia’s Mark Nicolaidis & Izac Carracher. In Pool D, Cuba’s Noslen Diaz & Jorge Alayo ended as top seeds with an unbeaten record following a 2-0 victory over Morocco’s Mohammed Abicha & Zouheir Elgraoui. The USA’s Partain & Benesh’s win secured their advancement while sending their Brazilian opponents to third place.
In Pool C, Germany’s Nils Ehlers & Clemens Wickler and Poland’s Michal Bryl & Bartosz Losiak also secured their spots in the Round of 16. Ehlers & Wickler battled through a tough three-set match to beat Thomas Hodges & Zachery Schubert, while Bryl & Losiak defeated France’s Remi Bassereau & Julien Lyneel.
