PARIS — The Canadian women's beach volleyball team will play for gold at the Paris Olympics after defeating Switzerland 14-21, 22-20, 15-12 in semifinal play at Eiffel Tower Stadium.
After dropping the opener, Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson saved a match ball against Tanja Hueberli and Nina Brunner in the second set before forcing a decider on extra points.
The Canadians sealed the win on their second match point when Switzerland sent the ball long.
Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson, both from Toronto, will play the winner of the late semifinal between Australia and top-ranked Brazil on Friday.
Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson are the first Canadian women's beach volleyball team to reach the Olympic podium. Canada's best previous result was a fifth-place finish at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
Canada reached the men's podium at the 1996 Games when Mark Heese and John Child took bronze in Atlanta.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Press
