Sticky issue puzzling fans at beach volleyball at Paris Olympics

Fans watching the beach volleyball in Paris have been scratching their heads about an unusual abnormality with the athletes.

All has been revealed. Pictures: Getty

Beach volleyball has been one of the hottest tickets in town during the Paris Olympics with one of the most dazzling stadiums of the entire Games.

The temporary stadium in front of the Eiffel Tower is Instagram gold.

But it’s a sight inside the playing arena that has prompted the same question over and over again - why is there a distinct lack of sand on the athletes’ bodies?

It’s because the sand used at the Champ de Mars venue is very different to the sand you’ll find at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

It was the same scenario at the Tokyo Games in 2021 where athletes, including Aussie stars Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy, were literally dripping with sweat, but the sand never stuck to their bodies as they threw themselves around.

In Paris, the beach volleyball will meet the required specifications of the International Volleyball Federation’s (FIVB) rules and regulations.

Sand free athletes in the beach volleyball. (Photo by CARL DE SOUZA / AFP)

Spectators cheer in the men's quarterfinal beach volleyball match between Spain and Norway. (Photo by CARL DE SOUZA / AFP)

Under FIVB regulations the sand is at least 40cm deep across all the courts.

The real reason the sand is so special is the operation that has gone on to ensure up to 92 per cent of the sand granules will be coarse or medium grade, from 0.5mm to 2mm.

Subsequently, the smoother grains in the sand can touch the person’s skin without sticking to it, falling right off instead.

As stated during the Tokyo Games, too small, and the sand becomes dusty and compacts over the course of a match; too large, and it scrapes against the players’ skin when they dive, AP reported.

The sand is flipping crazy. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

FIVB regulations also demand the sand in Paris is “an aesthetically pleasing, non-glaring colour, preferably tan, cream or pale brown”.

All organic material like shells, pebbles and seaweed are sifted out.

Artacho del Solar and Clancy have found the sand to their liking, qualifying for the semifinals which begin at 5am on Friday (AEST).

The Tokyo silver medallists are attempting to become the first Australian women to win gold since Natalie Cook and Kerri Pottharst in 2000.

Originally published as Sticky issue puzzling fans at beach volleyball at Paris Olympics