Brazil has won a crazy gold medal match in beach volleyball but there was one moment during the unusually tense battle that had everyone talking. The sparkling Eiffel Tower may have provided a beautiful backdrop for the clash, but there were ugly scenes on the sand when an explosive fight erupted between Brazil’s Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Canada’s Brandie Wilkerson. The couple eyeballed each other and pointed fingers in a fierce argument at the net.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today The referee stepped in to separate the pair, while on the other side side of the court Canada’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brazil’s Eduarda Santos Lisboa also exchanged words. “Oh hello, bit of a chat at the net. Getting heated,” the international commentator said.
“Oooh, you don’t see this very often,” another commentator said. Wilkerson was handed a yellow card but it was the quick-thinking DJ who managed to calm things down. Suddenly, the John Lennon classic started playing and the volleyballers instantly went from furious to smiles when the universally loved song rang out from across the court.
It was an incredible party vibe at the venue and Brazilian fans were out in force. They cheered on their stars who went on to win the memorable gold medal match, 26-24 12-21 15-10. Earlier, in the bronze medal match between Australian and Switzerland, it just wasn’t to be for the Aussies.
Australia’s Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy were strangely flat and totally outplayed by the high-voltage Swiss duo of Tanja Hueberli and Nina Brunner 21-17 21-15. They were blown away by a burst of brilliance from the Swiss in the middle of the first set ..
. effectively taking the stanza away. It only got worse in the second set with Hueberli’s blocking excellence and Brunner’s remarkable speed across the sand ensuring the end of the Aussies’ medal ambition.
“It was obviously hard, knowing it wasn’t our best performance out there to finish it off, but we’ve still done a great job throughout the two weeks and to make it to another semi-final at an Olympic Games, it’s something to be proud of,” Artacho del Solar said after the match. As for the LA Games in 2028, the Peruvian-born player said: “Never say never. I’ve always wanted to make it to five Olympics, finishing at home in Brisbane.
So I’d love to come back for it. We’ll see what life has in store.” In the short-term, reckoned Clancy, a holiday was in order.
Maybe a bit of sightseeing around Paris? But, er, perhaps she wouldn’t need to visit the Eiffel Tower. “That’s a tick,” she smiled a mite ruefully. - With AAP.
