In Paris 2024, the French waves appear to be awash in maple red tide. Taking beach volleyball by storm, Canada’s Melissa Human-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson lock eyes at the blazing gold. After 21-18 21-18, the two players took the quarterfinals right under the nose of world number two, Spain.
The team finally found their groove on the sand despite the initial ups and downs, thanks to Wilkerson’s physique and Paredes’s brilliant placement. Even though things looked bleak against Spain’s blazing smashes, Wilkerson blocked Alvarez to give Canada a 17-15 lead in the first half. Ultimately, Wikerson’s block at 20-17 sealed the deal for the duo, who worked their fingers to the bone.
Paredes told the Canadian Olympic Committee: 
“That was the first time we’ve ever played that team, so there was a lot of improvising happening in the game,” “You could see us honestly just finding that rhythm.”
Following her win, she stated:
“When we got together we wanted to make history together.”
Wilkerson added:
“I don’t think there’s ever a moment where we didn’t trust each other,” “If anything, we trust each other so much that we’re like, ‘Yeah, we’ll figure it out.’ But I think it took some shaking of each other to kind of (be) like ‘let’s go.’”
Paredes and Wilkerson proved that these Olympic games will be a Canadian victory parade in every possible discipline. With their third consecutive win at the quarter-finals, they have become the youngest team at 22 at the Paris 2024 Olympics. They seem persistent in ensuring this does not become their only moment at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
At Paris 2024, Duo’s long-term partnership flourished
The two players made their Olympic debuts three years ago with different partners at the Tokyo Olympics. Two pairs were set to meet in the semifinals, but one round too early brought an end to their Olympic campaign.
But long before this, they two partnered at York University in 2010. Having yet to win an Olympic medal, they decided to join forces in 2022 to fulfill their dream. Their flawless coordination again showed that they were a great team at the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour.
Humana-Paredes told the Canadian Olympic Committee:
“We were teammates way back when, then we were rivals, now we’re teammates again – so we have both sides of that foundation in our relationship.”
Following them in the semi-finals will be Nina Brunner and Tanja Huberli, who currently sit at the 9th place in the world rankings. As the match marks the historic appearance of the brilliant duo in the semi-finals, winning the match will be crucial for Canada. It has been almost two decades since John Child and Mark Heese won bronze in the men’s beach event.
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