Canadian beach volleyballers Wilkerson, Humana-Paredes to play for Olympic medal
Toronto duo wins quarterfinal vs. Spain, will face Swiss team in Thursday's semis
When Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson reunited as volleyball teammates nearly two years ago, they did it with a goal of making history together.
They did just that on Wednesday at the Paris Games.
The Toronto duo reached the semifinals with a 21-18, 21-18 victory over Spain's Daniela Alvarez and Tania Moreno at Eiffel Tower Stadium. The result ensured they will become the first Canadian women's beach volleyball team to play for an Olympic medal.
"I think this is the first step in what we promised to ourselves," said Humana-Paredes.
Next up is a Thursday semifinal against Switzerland's Nina Brunner and Tanja Hueberli. A win would lock up a berth in Friday's gold-medal match while a loss would secure a spot in the bronze-medal game earlier that day.
Watch live coverage of their semifinal match at 11 a.m. ET on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Olympics app and CBC Gem.
WATCH | Full replay of Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson's quarterfinal win:
Wilkerson and Humana-Paredes used to play the indoor game together at York University before focusing on the beach discipline with other partners.
They had fifth-place finishes at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 after falling in the quarterfinals. Wilkerson teamed with Heather Bansley at those Games while Humana-Paredes played with Sarah Pavan.
Both players said they noticed an on-court connection back when they first met. When their previous partnerships dissolved in 2022, a return to the same side of the net made sense.
"We were teammates way back when and then we were rivals and now we're teammates again," said Humana-Paredes. "So we have both sides of that foundation in our relationship.
"I think when we got together it came from a true place of admiration and trust and respect and [thinking], 'Wow, we could do great things together."'
It didn't take long for them to start posting solid results. They finished fifth at the world championships last year and took silver at the 2023 Pan Am Games in Santiago, Chile.
Currently ranked seventh in the world, they settled for a 1-2 pool record but topped podium favourites Kristen Nuss and Taryn Kloth of the United States in the round of 16.
"Every single team is excellent calibre, so every time it's a difficult game," Wilkerson said. "We have faced a lot of challenges before getting to this, so we are embracing difficult times and have made something so beautiful out of it.
"I am so proud of our team and our resilience and grit and promises we have made to each other to continuously show up."
WATCH | Full replay of upset victory over Americans Nuss, Kloth:
Like they did a day earlier, Humana-Parades and Wilkerson won the big points when it mattered on a warm, sunny afternoon in front of a sellout crowd.
"Really the theme of our team is controlling our side and making sure we don't get too caught up in overthinking things," Wilkerson said"
The Spanish duo played well in both sets but the Canadians shone late. Wilkerson was a force at the net and Humana-Parades flashed strong defensive skills.
Spain made eight attack errors to four for Canada in the first-ever meeting between the teams.
"For us to really remain patient and really steady, together, connected, was really important for us," said Humana-Paredes. "We had to make the big plays when we needed to."
Brazil's Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Santos Lisboa also advanced with a 21-16, 21-10 win over Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova of Latvia.
They will face Australia's Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy in the other semifinal.
Canada's lone Olympic medal in the sport came in 1996 when the men's duo of John Child and Mark Heese took bronze in Atlanta.
Humana-Paredes's father, Hernan Humana, coached the Child-Heese team at those Games.
While young at the time, Humana-Paredes recalled how they placed emphasis was on unity, heart and mindfulness rather than things like percentages.
"That's what I believe [we have] in our team," Humana-Paredes said. "I think we have intangibles. I think we play volleyball for the joy of it and for the joy of finding our true potential."
With files from CBC Sports
