Brazilians Alison and Bruno ended their beach volleyball partnership, less than two years after taking gold at the Rio Olympics, one of the greatest moments for the host nation.
Neither has announced a new partner.
“I’m really proud of what we built together, of our team being an example for many, but it came to an end now,” Alison said, according to the FIVB. “We talked, and we agreed that it’s time for us to look for new challenges. Besides of the good memories, we keep the respect, the friendship and the admiration for each other.”
Alison and Bruno had been a team since 2014 but struggled since their Olympic title. They haven’t made a final of an event outside of Brazil since September 2016.
They were dominant in 2015 and 2016, winning not only the Olympics, but also the world championships, back-to-back World Tour Finals and three FIVB World Tour Grand Slam events.
Other Brazilian pairs have emerged. Andre and Evandro won the 2017 World title as well as last week’s FIVB World Tour event in Brazil.
The top U.S. pair, 2008 Olympic champion Phil Dalhausser and his 2016 Olympic partner, Nick Lucena, won the first of three majors this season in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in March. They also won the last major of the 2017 season as well as the World Tour Finals, beating Andre and Evandro in the latter final.
The next major tournament this season is in Gstaad, Switzerland, in July. There are no world championships in even-numbered years.
“It’s early to say something, we’ll start from zero,” Alison said, according to the FIVB. “I’ll talk with my coaching staff and think about my future. Olympic qualification is starting soon, and we need to plan well because the goal is to compete in Tokyo 2020.”
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