"One of the world's largest sports" is indeed a truth with modification. But if you count the sand version under the larger volleyball umbrella, there's no question.
And that Sweden's Jonatan Hellvig and David Åhman are playing the Olympic Games final on Saturday evening is no small thing, says Anders Kristiansson, who, together with Rasmus Jonsson, forms the Swedish coaching team in Paris.
For beach volleyball, it's by far the largest, he says.
"He's a legend"
He knows what he's talking about. He's the man who led Sweden's men's national team in volleyball, the indoor version, to a sensational victory against the Soviet Union in the European Championship semifinal in 1989.
He's really a legend within volleyball. You had heard a lot about Anders Kristiansson, says Jonatan Hellvig about the first meeting with the now 75-year-old volleyball coach.
I remember how you got nervous at the first training session when he came, that "now I have to be careful here and play well", says David Åhman.
And now Kristiansson, together with Rasmus Jonsson, is the one who has taken a Swedish beach volleyball pair to the top with a tactical masterstroke. Six years ago, they outlined the contours of the "Swedish jump set", which involves Åhman/Hellvig trying to place their serve reception near the net to enable an attack already on the second ball.
Must think new
Thinking outside the box is a must for a country like Sweden. Otherwise, the blue-yellow duo wouldn't even have made it to the Olympic Games, says Kristiansson.
I like to develop things and not just do what everyone else does. Otherwise, Sweden will never assert itself in these kinds of world sports. Then we'll just have to stick to skiing and such, where there are only five opponents in the world. It's crazy, really, how you look at sports in Sweden.
He also thinks it's time for the Swedish people to wake up and discover the sport.
Now the media is here because it's the Olympic Games, so I think there's some talk. But the important thing is if we can get acceptance over time. When we play on the world tour, it's barely a sound even when we win.
Rasmus Jonsson adds:
In a world sport that is one of the largest in the world and where the competition is extremely tough. It's a bit different from many other sports that are big in Sweden.
