- Beach duo Ehlers/Wickler in the semifinals
With nerves of steel to the gold medal: For the beach volleyball duo Nils Ehlers and Clemens Wickler, this seems to be the recipe for success at the Olympics in Paris. "We were both extremely nervous. At least, that's what Nils just told me. On the field, I didn't see that in him," said Wickler after their confident semi-final win.
And the 29-year-old had obviously kept his composure for a victory that was never in doubt, winning 22:20, 21:15 against the Dutch pair Stefan Boermans/Yorick de Groot. This was their fifth win in five games at the stadium beneath the Eiffel Tower.
The Hamburg duo is raising hopes for a second gold medal among men, following Julius Brink and Jonas Reckermann's victory in London in 2012. On Thursday, they will face the winner of the match between Pablo Herrera Allepuz/Adrian Gavira Collado (Spain) and Anders Berntsen Mol/Christian Sandlie Sorum (Norway) in the semi-finals. The German duo will avoid the big favorites David Ahman and Jonatan Hellvig from Sweden until the possible final.
Nerves also play a role for Ehlers
Wickler, Germany's perennial beach volleyballer of the year, finished fifth with Julius Thole in 2021 in Tokyo. For Ehlers, these are his first games. His nerves were a topic after winning the opening match. He was "as nervous as never before" - and then delivered nine impressive block points. "That's a nice connection," said the 2.11-meter tall player.
The native Berliner seems to be making a leap from game to game at the Olympics, not only in blocking but also with intelligent shots into the backfield. "We haven't just been sitting around for the last two years, we've been working on this exactly," he said after one of the games in Paris.
Ehlers and Wickler fit together well
The two, who have been playing together since 2022, consistently deliver top performances at elite tournaments, but they haven't quite made it to the big win yet. Two weeks before the Olympics, they narrowly lost to the Norwegian Olympic champions Mol and Sorum in the semi-finals of a tournament in Vienna.
The chemistry between the Germans is obvious. They also play off each other in interviews, joking with small jokes. Communication on the field has been a focus in recent years and is key to their success. "We tell each other openly what's going on in us, even if something annoys us about our partner or we're nervous," said Wickler.
Such an honest conversation also led to a slight adjustment in their goals before Paris. Their initially very ambitious goal of winning a medal was scaled back. "Because it caused too much pressure, too much nervousness," said Ehlers. It's all about finding the right balance. Then they might just pull off the coup.
Wickler will not skip a ritual before the semi-finals. He always has dinner with his family. Penne Bolognese is his favorite. And then the good nerves come back.
Ehlers acknowledged that nerves also affect him during the Olympic Games, particularly in his first games, as seen in his statement after winning the opening match, "I was as nervous as never before, but then I delivered nine impressive block points."
With their semi-final match against either Pablo Herrera Allepuz/Adrian Gavira Collado (Spain) or Anders Berntsen Mol/Christian Sandlie Sorum (Norway) approaching, Ehlers and Wickler are aiming to emulate Julius Brink and Jonas Reckermann's gold medal win in London 2012 during The Olympic Games.
