Reigning Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour champions Anders Mol and Christian Sørum started their title defense on the right foot as the Norwegian superstars triumphed in this week’s Elite event held in Saquarema, Brazil, where they made their first appearance in the 2025 season.

The Beach Volley Vikings topped the all-European men’s podium set at the Campo de Aviação on Sunday, being joined by Sweden’s David Åhman/Jonatan Hellvig and the Netherlands’ Stefan Boermans/Yorick de Groot.

• Watch the Beach Pro Tour Saquarema Elite replays on VBTV

The Brazilian fans who went to the Campo de Aviação on Sunday were gifted with a duel between the last two teams to win gold at the Olympics. With a nearly flawless performance, Mol and Sørum, who were the winners of the Tokyo Games, topped Åhman and Hellvig, who stood at the top of the podium last year in Paris, 2-0 (21-18, 21-15).

The Norwegians ended the 2024 season in excellent form, winning four of the last five Beach Pro Tour events they played at, including the Finals, and apparently didn’t miss a beat in their first tournament in over four months, where they won all six matches and only dropped a set.

“It’s pretty cool to start the season with a win,” Sørum said. “We had a nice offseason, worked hard at the gym when we got back, and I can’t believe we got to win our first tournament of the year.”

The Saquarema gold medal match also added another chapter to what has been the biggest rivalry in men’s beach volleyball in quite some time. By triumphing in Brazil, the Norwegians increased their positive record against Åhman and Hellvig to eight wins in 13 matches.

“It’s always very tough against them, they never give up,” Mol reflected. “Jonatan injured his thumb, but he continues to play so well, it’s incredible. We have a big respect for them, but, yes, it feels amazing to win here in Saquarema.”

The second-place finish took the Swedish back to the podium on the Beach Pro Tour after a rare fifth-place finish at the Quintana Roo Elite, where they made their first appearance in the season, two weeks ago. Åhman and Hellvig now have 11 medals won in their last 13 Beach Pro Tour events, with seven golds, four silvers and two bronzes.

Boermans and de Groot take bronze

Also making their debut on the 2025 Beach Pro Tour, Dutch Olympians Boermans and De Groot secured the third and last spot in the podium with a two-set (21-11, 21-14) victory over the home team of Pedro Oliveira and Renato Lima in the bronze medal match.

Partners since 2021, the Europeans now have eight medals in 28 Beach Pro Tour events – two golds, two silvers and four bronzes.

The Beach Pro Tour will continue in Brazil for another week, with the country’s capital, Brasília, welcoming the third Elite event of the season from April 16-20.

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