Photographers flocked to the Olympic Beach Volleyball women's semi-final between Misty May-Treanor-Kerri Walsh and Talita Antunes-Renata Ribeiro | Beijing, China, August 19, 2008 – The buzz surrounding USA pair Misty May-Treanor’s and Kerri Walsh’s ascent to the Olympic Beach Volleyball Tournament gold-medal match has seen the media go into overdrive on coverage of the dazzling duo.
More than 50 photographers were present at the semi-final between May-Treanor-Walsh and Brazil's Talita Antunes-Renata Ribeiro. Here’s a selection on what the American journalists are saying on the May-Treanor-Walsh double act and the popularity of Beach Volleyball among fans at the Beijing Games and television viewers watching at home:
May, Walsh the best U.S. sports can offer
“They shook hands with the two referees, offered condolences and hugs to their conquered opponents, then made a circuit of the court, saying “Thank you” and shaking hands with all the volunteers who retrieved balls and raked the courts and cleaned the lines and put the awning up over their bench during time-outs. They literally chased down some of the volunteers from behind as they were leaving the court, not wanting them to get away without knowing how much their efforts were appreciated.” – Mike Telizic, MSNBC.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26282824/ Beach volleyball scoring points with viewers
“NBC had an inkling beach volleyball would work. That's why it lobbied for all the key games to be played in Beijing mornings – to fit perfectly into U.S. prime time. NBC was right. A star has been born.” – Barry Horne, The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/stories/081908dnspoolyhorn.426a410.html Outside the Rings: Beach volleyball is pretty cool
“Fast paced action, water misters for the crowd, and talented cheerleaders. Yeah, beach volleyball is pretty cool.” – Alex Cabrero, KSL.com
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=4033067
Beach volleyball is the AFZ: All Fun Zone
“This remains the coolest of Olympic sports played by the coolest of Olympic athletes.” – Jeff Miller, The Kansas City Star
http://www.kansascity.com/495/story/751328.html
No secret to Walsh’s birthday wish
“Kerri Walsh listened to her friends and family serenade her with ‘Happy Birthday,’ told her parents she loved them, then pushed a tiny sliver of chocolate cake into her mouth. Walsh may be the fittest athlete in women’s beach volleyball and dominate the sport with partner Misty May-Treanor, but she still wasn’t going to take any chances the night before a big match. ‘I’ve got to wear a bikini tomorrow,’ Walsh, now 30, whispered to a friend. ‘I love the cake, but I can only have a little bit.’” – Martin Rogers, Yahoo! Sports
http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/beach_volleyball/news?slug=ro-walsh081708&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Kerri Walsh's B-Day Wish: A Gold Medal!
“So what does an Olympic champion wish for on her birthday – just ask beach volleyball star Kerri Walsh, who celebrated turning the big 3-0 in Beijing. Walsh, who along with partner Misty May-Treanor is a defending Olympic champion in beach volleyball, celebrated her birthday with 80 friends and family Saturday night in Beijing and, before cutting her cake, rhetorically asked, ‘Hmm. What should I wish for? It’s got to be gold,’ Walsh told PEOPLE after a toast. ‘We want to win a gold medal by beating the best in the world.’” – Cynthia Wang, People Magazine
http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20219798,00.html American beach volleyball duo as good as advertised
“The crowd, loud and appreciative on a hot Beijing morning, roared its approval as (Kerri) Walsh bowed to (Misty) May-Treanor in recognition of her effort.” – David Ramsey, The Gazette, Colorado Springs
http://www.gazette.com/sports/good_39484___article.html/advertised_volleyball.html | 
