With three small children at home — one for each Olympic gold medal — Kerri Walsh Jennings turned into a morning person whether she wanted to or not.
So preparing to play at midnight in the marquee match of the Rio de Janeiro beach volleyball tournament is less of a struggle than it could have been.
“I’ve been trying so long to be a morning person and it’s just so contrary to who I am,” Walsh Jennings said after she and April Ross beat Australia 21-14, 21-13 in a match that began at 12:34am and took only 35 minutes.
Ross said the players prepared for the late start by taking a nap during the day. They avoided walking in the hot sun, watching video instead, while also finding plenty of time to meditate, do a crossword puzzle and read.
“We knew it was going to be really electric out there and we knew it was going to be a really long day,” Walsh Jennings said.
“And it’s under the lights in Copa[cabana Beach]. So it’s a great atmosphere,” she said.
That’s something the Americans can get used to. After all, as the biggest names in the tournament — at least for the lucrative US television market — they are to play again at midnight for their second match, against China early tomorrow morning.
The gold-medal match is also scheduled to start at midnight on Thursday.
“That’s the goal,” Walsh Jennings said.
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