Sam Schachter and Jonathan Pickett, a duo from Ontario, caused a significant upset by advancing to the men’s semifinals at the Elite16 beach volleyball tournament in Montreal. The 39th-ranked Canadian pair defeated the world’s top-ranked team, Jacob Hölting Nilsson and Elmer Andersson, with a score of 2-0 (21-19, 21-17) during the quarterfinals at Parc Jean-Drapeau on Saturday. Earlier in the day, Schachter from Richmond Hill and Pickett from Wiarton also defeated Alexander Horst and Paul Pascariuc from Austria. Their next challenge will be against Brazil’s Renato Andrew Lima de Carvalho and Andre Stein in the semifinals on Sunday morning.
Meanwhile, Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson from Canada are aiming for a third consecutive victory in the women’s event. The Toronto pair will be facing Tina Graudina and Anastasija Kravcenoka from Latvia in the quarterfinals, and fans can watch the live coverage on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson have previously clinched the titles in 2023 and 2025, with an Olympic silver medal in between.