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Olympic Volleyball-Beach Recaps: 28 July (Day 9)

Men's Beach Volleyball Bronze Medal Match

CAN vs. POR

Canada Wins Bronze

Of the two Cinderella teams in men's beach volleyball only one could stay around for theball. No. 8 seed Mark HEESE and John CHILD (CAN) won the bronze medal after battling their way through the treacherous loser's bracket, using a steady, cool-headed style of play. They had to beat the red-hot pair of Luis MAIA and Joao BRENHA (POR), who had swaggered through the tournament relying on sheer force of will at times to help them overcome a height disadvantage and a No. 18 seed. Bolting out to a 7-0 lead in the first set, Canada succeeded in disrupting the momentum the Portuguese had built during the tournament. MAIA/BRENHA came back with four points but then could only watch as HEESE/CHILD reeled off the final four points, punctuating the set with a service ace. In the second set, aggressive serving helped Canada move to a 4-1 start, sparked by HEESE and CHILD with an ace apiece. MAIA showed a flash of his earlier fire when he helped his partner to a 6-5 lead, but the Portuguese pair could only score two more points and lost 12-8.

Final Score: CAN 2, POR 0 (12-5, 12-8)

"The crowd was cheering good play, not big muscles," said Mark HEESE (CAN).

"We felt an important part of the match was to get a big start and keep up the momentum. We have played them before and both won and lost. We knew if we played well, we could beat them. This medal means a lot to everyone who plays beach volleyball in Canada. It has taken off and I hope this helps keep it going. To win the medal in front of a huge crowd like this is fantastic. We did it for all the Canadians back home," said Heese.


Men's Beach Volleyball Gold Medal Match

USA vs. USA

Kiraly Wins Third Olympic Gold Medal

Karch KIRALY (USA), with a lot of help from his partner Kent STEFFES, won his third Olympic gold medal in volleyball with a 2-0 win over Mike DODD and Mike WHITMARSH (USA) in an all-American gold-medal match in beach volleyball. STEFFES served notice that it was going to be a shootout when he opened the match with a rocket serve for an ace. He and his partner then tore out to a 6-0 lead before Mike WHITMARSH's blocking took some of the wind out of their sails. "The Mikes" then used more blocking to score three straight points, but they sided out endlessly, The Mikes could only put the ball away for a point two more times and fell 12-5. STEFFES opened the second set with another ace, only this time, DODD/WHITMARSH stayed close and even tied the score at five. KIRALY's trademark defense combined with aggressive serving by STEFFES enabled them to move to 11-6. DODD/WHITMARSH answered with two points but could only stave off four match-point opportunities before losing 12-8.

Final Score USA (KIRALY/STEFFES) def. USA (DODD/WHITMARSH) 12-5, 12-8.

"They were on fire. It was normal Kent and Karch volleyball. We get used to seeing them play like that. It is just when they make 8 or 10 awesome plays in a row it can get frustrating," said Mike WHITMARSH (USA)

"Losing to Karch and Kent is nothing to go home ashamed about," said Mike DODD. "Personally and athletically, this has been the best experience of my life."

"It was sweet to win medals in both forms of volleyball," said Karch KIRALY. "It was awesome to play so well in front of so many fans. It went better than anyone hoped for."

This is an official publication of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department.


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The volunteer staff of the 1996 Olympic Games totaled 50,152. They worked an estimated 850,000 shifts.