Netherlands and Sweden Capture Gold at 2026 EuroBeachVolley, Securing First LA28 Olympic Berths

The road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games has officially begun on the sands of Stare Jabłonki, Poland. As the 2026 CEV European Beach Volleyball Championships, known as EuroBeachVolley, concluded on Sunday, the first continental quota spots for the LA28 Games were awarded to the newly crowned champions from the Netherlands and Sweden.[1]

In the women's tournament, the Dutch pairing of Katja Stam and Raïsa Schoon captured their first-ever European title. The two-time Olympians, currently ranked fifth in the FIVB World Ranking, completed a flawless run in Poland, winning all six of their matches to secure the gold medal.[1]

The second-seeded Dutch duo delivered a commanding performance in the gold medal match, sweeping the 17th-seeded Spanish team of Sofia Izuzquiza and Tania Moreno in straight sets, 2-0 (21-13, 21-11). The victory marked the fourth time a Dutch women's team has won the continental crown, and the first since 2018.[1][2]

For Stam and Schoon, the gold medal represents a hard-fought culmination of years of near-misses and physical setbacks. The pair had previously reached the EuroBeachVolley podium twice, earning silver in 2021 and bronze in 2022. "When I think of where I was a year ago, with a lot of pain and barely standing upright, this success truly feels unbelievable," Stam said following the victory, emphasizing the importance of her team sticking together through recent challenges.[1]

The women's bronze medal was claimed by Latvia's two-time European champions, Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova. The Latvian duo edged out French Paris 2024 Olympians Clémence Vieira and Aline Chamereau in a grueling 2-1 battle (20-22, 21-16, 15-12) to secure their spot on the podium.[1]

On the men's side, the Swedish youth movement continued its meteoric ascent. Twenty-one-year-old Jacob Hölting Nilsson and 20-year-old Elmer Andersson—the reigning world number one team and silver medalists at the 2025 FIVB World Championship—captured their first senior European title.[1][2]

The Swedish youngsters faced a monumental task in the final, squaring off against Norway's Anders Mol and Christian Sørum. The Norwegian "Beach Volley Vikings" were seeking an unprecedented sixth continental crown, having reached the final on a flawless 5-0 run that showcased their trademark dominance at the net.[2]

In a dramatic three-set clash, Hölting Nilsson and Andersson denied the Norwegian legends, securing a 2-1 victory (21-18, 18-21, 15-10). The win served as a measure of redemption for the Swedes, who had previously fallen to Mol and Sørum in major international competition, and cemented their status as the new standard-bearers in European beach volleyball.[1][2]

"It feels amazing," Hölting Nilsson remarked after the match. "We played better and better with each match, but obviously we had to play the best team in the world in this final and probably one of the finest duos in beach volleyball history as well, so this victory truly means a lot to us."

The men's bronze medal went to France's Arnaud Gauthier-Rat and Téo Rotar, who defeated Sweden's reigning Olympic and world champions David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig 2-1 (21-18, 19-21, 15-12) in a tightly contested third-place playoff.[1]

Beyond the prestige of the European titles, the victories carry massive implications for the upcoming Olympic cycle. By winning the continental championships, both the Swedish and Dutch teams earned their respective National Olympic Committees a guaranteed quota spot for the LA28 Games, removing the pressure of the grueling global qualification circuit.[2]

The success of several teams in Stare Jabłonki also highlighted the impact of global development initiatives. The Swedish, Dutch, and Spanish federations all receive funding and coaching support through the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment Programme, which aims to elevate national team programs worldwide. The Netherlands Volleyball Federation, for instance, has utilized $332,000 in grants to secure elite coaching expertise for their women's pairs.[2]