Competition continued in the Olympic beach volleyball tournament as athletes took to the sand and battled at the steps of the Eiffel Tower.
Details from each match of Day 3 are below.
Men's Pool A: Italy def. Australia
The Italian duo of Paolo Nicolai/Samuele Cottafava defeated the Australian pairing of Izac Carracher/Mark Nicolaidis in straight sets to kick off the day's action.
The Italian team got out of the gate strong, taking an early 9-5 lead in the first set. While the Australians were able to close and pull within two, the early deficit proved too difficult to erase and the Aussies dropped the first set, 21-19.
The Australian duo responded at the beginning of the second set, going up 5-3, the Italians responded with a flurry of attacks, taking command of the set with a 14-9 lead. The Australians pulled within one after a run of four unanswered points, but Nicolai scored the final point to put the match to rest.
The win puts Nicolai and Cottafava on top of the pool A standings with three points, while Carracher and Nicolaidis sit in fourth with two points.
Men's Pool F: Netherlands def. Spain
Action continued with a group F match up where the Dutch pairing of Stefan Boermans/Yorick De Groot breezed past Adrian Gavira/Pablo Herrera in straight sets.
The first set started out close with the teams keeping pace at 11-11. The Netherlands then went on a 6-1 run and ultimately took a commanding 21-15 win. The second set followed a similar pattern, with the teams tied at 10-10 before the Dutch stormed to the finish line on a 11-5 run to close out the match emphatically.
The Netherlands team is currently in first place in group F but will await the results of the U.S. and France to see how the standings shake out after the second round of matches.
Women's Pool B: China def. Canada
Veterans Xue Chen/Xia Xinyi of China used their experience to take the win over Canada’s Heather Bansley/Sophie Bukovec in women’s Pool B play.
The Chinese duo continuously targeted first-time Olympian Bukovec, who struggled to keep up with the constant pressure around the net.
After winning the first set 21-15, Xue/Xia hung on to take the second set, 21-19, and take the early lead in Pool B.
Women's Pool F: Switzerland def. Spain
Switzerland’s Tanja Hueberli/Nina Brunner defeated Spain’s Daniela Alvarez/Tania Moreno in straight sets during women’s Pool F action.
After winning the first set 21-12, the 2023 European Champions were tested in the second set by the 22-year-old Spaniards. The back-and-forth second set reached a tie at 19 apiece, with Alvarez/Moreno competing despite their experience disadvantage.
But Hueberli/Brunner were more efficient, going 27-for-43 on the attack to grind out the win.
Women's Pool D: Canada def. Paraguay
Canada’s Melissa Humana-Parades/Brandie Wilkerson knocked off Giuliana Poletti/Michelle Valiente of Paraguay in Pool D action at Eiffel Tower Stadium.
The Canadian duo won comfortably, proving why they were one of the top-ranked teams heading into the Paris Games.
Humana-Parades/Wilkerson took the first set 21-16, before absolutely dominating the second in 21–12 fashion. It was an encouraging performance from the Canadians, who aspire to reach the podium in 2024.
Men's Pool F: USA def. France
In the Olympic debut for Chase Budinger and Miles Evans, the U.S. duo steamrolled the French team of Youssef Krou and Arnaud Gauthier-Rat, in straight sets. The U.S. dominated, 21-14, 21-11, to win their opening match of the Olympic beach volleyball tournament. The Americans didn't trail once in their first match.
Budinger, 36, is an Olympian for the first time after playing seven seasons and over 400 games in the NBA. Budinger is now the first athlete to have played in both an NBA regular season game and in Olympic beach volleyball. He and Evans are aiming to become the first U.S. men’s beach volleyball team to win a medal since the 2008 Beijing Games.
Budinger and Evans return to the beach on Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. ET against Dutch duo Stefan Boermans and Yorick De Groot.
Women's Pool D: Switzerland def. Latvia
The world's 8th- and 13th-ranked duos was a minor disappointment as No. 13 basically cruised to a win.
Switzerland's Esmee Bobner/Zoe Verge-Depre defeating Latvian pair Tina Graudina /Anastasija Samoilova.
Bobner and Verge-Depre did not trail in the first set, leading by as many as eight en route to a 21-15 win and were even better in the second (21-14).
The Swiss piled up five aces, five blocks, and 11 digs in the win.
Men's Pool A: Qatar def. Sweden
Tokyo bronze medalists Ahmed Tijan/Cherif Younousse Samba of Qatar defeated Swedish phenoms David Aahman/Jonatan Hellvig, winning in a thrilling three sets at Eiffel Tower Stadium.
Aahman/Hellvig went on multiple runs in the first set, including a five-point spurt to go up by seven, en route to a 21-15 set one victory.
But Qatar fought back and shined after the first set, unleashing a four-point run in the second set that saw things tied at 19 apiece. Two strong attack points by Younousse Samba gave Qatar the crucial 21-19 set two win to push things further.
The third and final set was a classic, with the two sides going back-and-forth through multiple match points before Qatar finally broke through with a 20-18 set win.
The convincing victory over the World No. 1 team sets Qatar up for what should be a deep run in the men’s tournament, as they look to capture another medal in Paris.
Women's Pool F: France def. Germany
France’s Lezana Placette/Alexia Richard fed off the home crowd and defeated Laura Ludwig/Louisa Lippmann of Germany 21-14, 22-20, in Pool F play.
A gritty German effort pushed France in the second set, but the pressure of Placette/Richard proved too much to handle. Tied at 20 apiece in the second, Placette/Richard capitalized on multiple errors from Ludwig/Lippmann to take the win.
Women's Pool B: USA def. Australia
U.S. beach volleyball duo Taryn Kloth/Kristen Nuss defeated Taliqua Clancy/Mariafe Artacho of Australia in straight sets, taking the early lead in Pool B under the dazzling lights of the Eiffel Tower.
It was a statement win by Kloth/Nuss, who knocked off an Australian side that won silver in Tokyo. The Americans displayed composure and chemistry throughout the match, capitalizing on Australian errors in both sets.
The win earned Kloth/Nuss the top spot in Pool B ahead of their match against China on Thursday.