Team Preview

Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour
Olympic Games Paris 2024
July 27 - August 10, 2024

(12) Samuele Cottafava/Paolo Nicolai, Italy

Samuele Cottafava
Italy

Photo: FIVB

Personal Info

Birth Date:

Nov 1, 1998 (25 yrs old)

Home Town:

Modena

Height:

193 cm (6'4")

Weight:

82 kg (180 lb)

Seasons:

Tournaments:

Career Wins:

Career Winnings:

US$164,392.41

Paolo Nicolai
Italy

Photo: FIVB

Personal Info

Birth Date:

Aug 6, 1988 (36 yrs old)

Home Town:

Ortona

Height:

203 cm (6'8")

Weight:

91 kg (200 lb)

Seasons:

Tournaments:

153

Career Wins:

Career FIVB WT Wins:

Career Winnings:

US$701,287.50

Team Career Summary

Tour	Played	1	2	3	4	5	7	9	13	17	25	Money
FIVB	33	1	3	3	2	8	0	10	3	3	0	US$312,250.00

Previous Paris Results

Year	Partner - Result	Partner - Result
2022	Paolo Nicolai - 3rd	Samuele Cottafava - 3rd
2023	Paolo Nicolai - 5th	Samuele Cottafava - 5th

Recent Results

Tour	Date	Tournament	Seed	Finish	Points	Money
FIVB	7/10-14/2024	Elite16 Vienna	8	13th	460	US$5,000.00
FIVB	7/3-7/2024	Elite16 Gstaad	9	4th	900	US$10,000.00
FIVB	6/5-9/2024	Elite16 Ostrava	8	5th	760	US$8,000.00
FIVB	5/22-26/2024	BPT Elite16 Espinho	7	9th	600	US$6,000.00
FIVB	4/17-21/2024	Elite16 Tepic	6	13th	460	US$5,000.00
FIVB	3/5-9/2024	Elite16 Doha	4	5th	760	US$8,000.00
FIVB	12/6-9/2023	BPT Finals Doha 2023	8	5th	0	US$20,000.00
FIVB	11/22-26/2023	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	5	2nd	1100	US$20,000.00
FIVB	10/6-15/2023	Beach Volleyball World Championships	8	9th	800	US$11,000.00
FIVB	9/27-10/1/2023	Elite16 Paris	6	5th	760	US$8,000.00
FIVB	8/16-20/2023	Elite16 Hamburg	13, Q3	2nd	1100	US$20,000.00

Olympic Games Paris 2024 Matches

Date

Bracket

Opponent

Score

Time

Sat, 7/27/2024

Pool A

Ahmed Tijan / Cherif Younousse, Qatar (13)

Lost 19-21, 18-21

0:43

Player	Game	Attacks	Kills	Errors	Hitting Pct.	Blocks	Digs	Aces	Service Errors
Samuele Cottafava	Total	18	6	2	0.222	0	6	1	2
	1	6	3	1	0.333	0	1	1	1
	2	12	3	1	0.167	0	5	0	1
Paolo Nicolai	Total	29	14	11	0.103	4	0	0	2
	1	13	4	6	-0.154	3	0	0	2
	2	16	10	5	0.313	1	0	0	0

Mon, 7/29/2024

Pool A

Izac Carracher / Mark Nicolaidis, Australia (24)

Won 21-19, 21-18

0:39

Player	Game	Attacks	Kills	Errors	Hitting Pct.	Blocks	Digs	Aces	Service Errors
Samuele Cottafava	Total	15	7	4	0.200	0	3	2	5
	1	8	3	2	0.125	0	3	0	2
	2	7	4	2	0.286	0	0	2	3
Paolo Nicolai	Total	30	22	1	0.700	3	1	1	4
	1	16	12	1	0.688	1	1	0	3
	2	14	10	0	0.714	2	0	1	1

Thu, 8/1/2024

Pool A

David Ahman / Jonatan Hellvig, Sweden (1)

Won 24-22, 21-17

0:45

Player	Game	Attacks	Kills	Errors	Hitting Pct.	Blocks	Digs	Aces	Service Errors
Samuele Cottafava	Total	19	9	4	0.263	0	10	1	2
	1	8	5	2	0.375	0	6	1	1
	2	11	4	2	0.182	0	4	0	1
Paolo Nicolai	Total	35	20	4	0.457	3	2	3	10
	1	19	10	3	0.368	2	0	0	5
	2	16	10	1	0.563	1	2	3	5

Mon, 8/5/2024

Winner 1

Andy Benesh / Miles Partain, United States (9)

Lost 17-21, 18-21

0:38

Player	Game	Attacks	Kills	Errors	Hitting Pct.	Blocks	Digs	Aces	Service Errors
Samuele Cottafava	Total	20	9	7	0.100	0	2	1	5
	1	12	5	4	0.083	0	2	0	2
	2	8	4	3	0.125	0	0	1	3
Paolo Nicolai	Total	20	14	2	0.600	0	1	1	3
	1	11	8	1	0.636	0	1	0	2
	2	9	6	1	0.556	0	0	1	1

Overall Tournament Stats
Player	Attacks	Kills	Errors	Hitting Pct.	Blocks	Digs	Aces	Service Errors
Samuele Cottafava	72	31	17	0.194	0	21	5	14
Paolo Nicolai	114	70	18	0.456	10	4	5	19
Total	186	101	35	0.355	10	25	10	33
Opponents	149	79	30	0.329	17	25	8	12

Olympic Games, World Championships, World Tour Finals Results

Year	Event	Location	Partner - Result	Partner - Result
2009	World Championships	Stavanger	Did not play	Matteo Varnier - 17th
2011	World Championships	Rome	Did not play	Matteo Martino - 9th
2012	Olympic Games	London	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 5th
2013	World Championships	Stare Jablonki	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 9th
2015	World Championships	The Hague	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 17th
2015	World Tour Finals	Fort Lauderdale	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 5th
2016	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 2nd
2017	World Championships	Vienna	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 17th
2017	World Tour Finals	Hamburg	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 3rd
2018	World Tour Finals	Hamburg	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 5th
2019	World Championships	Hamburg	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 5th
2019	World Tour Finals	Rome	Jakob Windisch - 25th	Daniele Lupo - 17th
2021	Olympic Games	Tokyo	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 5th
2021	World Tour Finals	Cagliari	Did not play	Daniele Lupo - 4th
2022	World Championships	Rome	Paolo Nicolai - 9th	Samuele Cottafava - 9th
2022	World Tour Finals	Doha	Paolo Nicolai - 3rd	Samuele Cottafava - 3rd
2023	World Championships	Tlaxcala	Paolo Nicolai - 9th	Samuele Cottafava - 9th
2023	World Tour Finals	Doha	Paolo Nicolai - 5th	Samuele Cottafava - 5th

Head to Head Results
Cottafava/Nicolai trail the series against the field 38-44 (Lead 9 Series, Trail 8 Series, 4 Series Tied)

Date	Tour	Tournament	Round	Winning Team	Seed	Losing Team	Seed	Score	Time
Trail the series against # 1 Ahman/Hellvig, Sweden 2-5
8/1/24	FIVB	Olympic Games Paris 2024	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	12	Ahman/Hellvig	1	24-22, 21-17	0:45
7/6/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Semi-Finals	Ahman/Hellvig	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	19-21, 21-17, 15-10	0:45
7/4/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Pool A	Ahman/Hellvig	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	22-20, 23-25, 15-12	0:54
11/26/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Gold Medal	Ahman/Hellvig	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	21-11, 21-18	0:32
8/20/23	FIVB	Elite16 Hamburg	Gold Medal	Ahman/Hellvig	5	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	21-16, 22-24, 21-19	1:00
8/17/23	FIVB	Elite16 Hamburg	Pool D	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	Ahman/Hellvig	5	21-18, 16-21, 15-13	0:45
2/3/23	FIVB	Doha Elite16	Pool A	Ahman/Hellvig	8	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	21-19, 21-9	0:28
Trail the series against # 2 Mol/Sorum, Norway 1-8
7/7/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Bronze Medal	Mol/Sorum	3	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	20-22, 22-20, 28-26	1:09
10/12/23	FIVB	Beach Volleyball World Championships	Winner 2	Mol/Sorum	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-19, 21-17	0:39
8/20/23	FIVB	Elite16 Hamburg	Semi-Finals	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	Mol/Sorum	1	25-23, 19-21, 15-13	0:57
4/27/23	FIVB	Elite16 Uberlândia	Pool A	Mol/Sorum	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	21-19, 21-15	0:33
3/23/23	FIVB	Elite16 Tepic	Pool A	Mol/Sorum	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	21-19, 21-13	0:31
2/2/23	FIVB	Doha Elite16	Pool A	Mol/Sorum	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	21-15, 19-21, 15-12	0:47
1/29/23	FIVB	Beach Pro Tour Finals	Semi-Finals	Mol/Sorum	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	21-15, 14-21, 15-10	0:58
1/28/23	FIVB	Beach Pro Tour Finals	Pool B	Mol/Sorum	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	23-25, 21-16, 15-12	0:53
3/25/22	FIVB	Rosarito Elite 16	Pool B	Mol/Sorum	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	15, Q7	20-22, 27-25, 15-7	0:54
Trail the series against # 3 Ehlers/Wickler, Germany 1-2
3/8/24	FIVB	Elite16 Doha	Winner 2	Ehlers/Wickler	8	Cottafava/Nicolai	4	21-18, 21-19	0:36
8/18/23	FIVB	Elite16 Hamburg	Pool D	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	Ehlers/Wickler	4	27-25, 21-19	0:42
4/29/23	FIVB	Elite16 Uberlândia	Winner 1	Ehlers/Wickler	6	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	24-22, 21-17	0:37
Trail the series against # 4 Loyola/Wanderley, Brazil 1-7
7/12/24	FIVB	Elite16 Vienna	Pool A	Loyola/Wanderley	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	By Forfeit
12/8/23	FIVB	BPT Finals Doha 2023	Winner 1	Loyola/Wanderley	9	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-18, 21-19	0:36
9/29/23	FIVB	Elite16 Paris	Pool C	Loyola/Wanderley	3	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	21-19, 15-21, 15-10	0:49
8/11/22	FIVB	Hamburg Elite 16	Pool B	Loyola/Wanderley	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	22-20, 21-16	0:40
6/4/22	FIVB	Jurmala Elite 16	Semi-Finals	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q1	Loyola/Wanderley	3	21-19, 22-20	0:40
5/27/22	FIVB	Ostrava Elite 16	Pool D	Loyola/Wanderley	4	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	21-16, 21-17	0:35
4/16/22	FIVB	Itapema Challenge	Winner 2	Loyola/Wanderley	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	13	21-19, 23-21	0:44
4/15/22	FIVB	Itapema Challenge	Pool A	Loyola/Wanderley	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	13	29-31, 21-18, 15-13	1:05
Lead the series against # 5 Perusic/Schweiner, Czech Republic 4-3
6/6/24	FIVB	Elite16 Ostrava	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	Perusic/Schweiner	1	14-21, 21-13, 15-7	0:43
5/23/24	FIVB	BPT Elite16 Espinho	Pool B	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	Perusic/Schweiner	2	21-11, 12-21, 15-13	0:45
12/6/23	FIVB	BPT Finals Doha 2023	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	Perusic/Schweiner	4	21-18, 22-20	0:40
11/25/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Winner 2	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	Perusic/Schweiner	1	21-19, 19-21, 15-8	0:53
9/30/23	FIVB	Elite16 Paris	Winner 2	Perusic/Schweiner	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	21-19, 21-15	0:38
4/28/23	FIVB	Elite16 Uberlândia	Pool A	Perusic/Schweiner	8	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	19-21, 21-13, 15-12	0:49
1/26/23	FIVB	Beach Pro Tour Finals	Pool B	Perusic/Schweiner	7	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	29-31, 21-18, 15-11	0:58
Lead the series against # 6 Gauthier-Rat/Krou, France 2-0
9/30/22	FIVB	Paris Elite 16	Pool C	Cottafava/Nicolai	3	Gauthier-Rat/Krou	14, Q2	21-12, 21-15	0:29
5/7/22	FIVB	Doha Challenge	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Gauthier-Rat/Krou	17, Q3	30-32, 21-16, 15-9	0:56
Series tied with # 7 Boermans/de Groot, Netherlands 2-2
4/18/24	FIVB	Elite16 Tepic	Pool C	Boermans/de Groot	3	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	21-16, 21-11	0:32
11/26/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Semi-Finals	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	Boermans/de Groot	8	21-15, 21-15	0:32
3/25/23	FIVB	Elite16 Tepic	Winner 2	Boermans/de Groot	13, Q5	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	19-21, 21-16, 15-9	0:46
5/8/22	FIVB	Doha Challenge	Semi-Finals	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Boermans/de Groot	3	16-21, 21-9, 15-11	0:42
Trail the series against # 8 Goncalves/Mariano, Brazil 0-2
11/23/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Pool D	Goncalves/Mariano	4	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	23-21, 24-22	0:44
5/31/23	FIVB	Elite16 Ostrava	Qualifier 2	Goncalves/Mariano	15, Q10	Cottafava/Nicolai	Q2	21-19, 14-21, 15-12	0:49
Series tied with # 9 Benesh/Partain, United States 2-2
8/5/24	FIVB	Olympic Games Paris 2024	Winner 1	Benesh/Partain	9	Cottafava/Nicolai	12	21-17, 21-18	0:38
6/8/24	FIVB	Elite16 Ostrava	Winner 2	Benesh/Partain	10	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-16, 17-21, 15-11	0:47
12/8/23	FIVB	BPT Finals Doha 2023	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	Benesh/Partain	5	21-17, 21-14	0:33
9/30/23	FIVB	Elite16 Paris	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	Benesh/Partain	1	21-17, 21-16	0:35
Trail the series against # 10 Bryl/Losiak, Poland 3-5
7/11/24	FIVB	Elite16 Vienna	Pool A	Bryl/Losiak	9	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	By Forfeit
7/6/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Winner 2	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Bryl/Losiak	13, Q1	21-16, 18-21, 15-10	0:47
5/25/24	FIVB	BPT Elite16 Espinho	Winner 1	Bryl/Losiak	11	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	22-20, 21-15	0:40
3/6/24	FIVB	Elite16 Doha	Pool D	Cottafava/Nicolai	4	Bryl/Losiak	5	16-21, 21-19, 15-12	0:55
12/7/23	FIVB	BPT Finals Doha 2023	Pool A	Bryl/Losiak	10	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	12-21, 21-19, 15-13	0:48
8/11/22	FIVB	Hamburg Elite 16	Pool B	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	Bryl/Losiak	15, Q3	24-22, 21-18	0:38
5/26/22	FIVB	Ostrava Elite 16	Pool D	Bryl/Losiak	5	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	21-13, 18-21, 23-21	0:56
5/8/22	FIVB	Doha Challenge	Gold Medal	Bryl/Losiak	2	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	21-18, 21-15	0:35
Trail the series against # 11 Immers/van de Velde, Netherlands 0-1
6/7/24	FIVB	Elite16 Ostrava	Pool A	Immers/van de Velde	9	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-18, 21-18	0:35
Series tied with # 13 Tijan/Younousse, Qatar 4-4
7/27/24	FIVB	Olympic Games Paris 2024	Pool A	Tijan/Younousse	13	Cottafava/Nicolai	12	21-19, 21-18	0:43
5/24/24	FIVB	BPT Elite16 Espinho	Pool B	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	Tijan/Younousse	10	21-19, 19-21, 15-8	0:52
3/6/24	FIVB	Elite16 Doha	Pool D	Cottafava/Nicolai	4	Tijan/Younousse	12	17-21, 21-17, 15-8	0:48
12/6/23	FIVB	BPT Finals Doha 2023	Pool A	Tijan/Younousse	1	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-19, 21-19	0:38
11/23/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Pool D	Tijan/Younousse	13, Q1	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	21-13, 16-21, 15-13	0:52
3/24/23	FIVB	Elite16 Tepic	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Tijan/Younousse	8	21-18, 21-12	0:31
9/30/22	FIVB	Paris Elite 16	Pool C	Tijan/Younousse	6	Cottafava/Nicolai	3	21-18, 26-24	0:42
6/5/22	FIVB	Jurmala Elite 16	Gold Medal	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q1	Tijan/Younousse	1	16-21, 27-25, 15-12	0:56
Lead the series against # 14 Carambula/Ranghieri, Italy 1-0
1/28/23	FIVB	Beach Pro Tour Finals	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	Carambula/Ranghieri	10	21-18, 21-11	0:35
Trail the series against # 15 Hodges/Schubert, Australia 0-1
5/23/24	FIVB	BPT Elite16 Espinho	Pool B	Hodges/Schubert	15, Q11	Cottafava/Nicolai	7	21-16, 22-20	0:36
Lead the series against # 16 Alayo/Diaz, Cuba 1-0
6/15/22	FIVB	Beach Volleyball World Championships	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	14	Alayo/Diaz	39	21-18, 21-18	0:36
Lead the series against # 17 Horl/Horst, Austria 3-0
11/25/23	FIVB	Elite16 Joao Pessoa	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	5	Horl/Horst	10	21-14, 21-14	0:33
9/28/23	FIVB	Elite16 Paris	Pool C	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	Horl/Horst	14, Q5	25-23, 21-19	0:40
5/31/23	FIVB	Elite16 Ostrava	Qualifier 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	Q2	Horl/Horst	Q15	21-16, 21-18	0:36
Series tied with # 18 Gavira/Herrera, Spain 2-2
4/18/24	FIVB	Elite16 Tepic	Pool C	Gavira/Herrera	14, Q2	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	18-21, 21-19, 15-12	0:49
10/9/23	FIVB	Beach Volleyball World Championships	Pool H	Gavira/Herrera	17	Cottafava/Nicolai	8	21-15, 21-18	0:38
8/19/23	FIVB	Elite16 Hamburg	Winner 2	Cottafava/Nicolai	13, Q3	Gavira/Herrera	15, Q9	16-21, 21-13, 15-10	0:43
7/21/23	FIVB	Challenge Edmonton	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	13	Gavira/Herrera	12	25-23, 19-21, 16-14	1:01
Lead the series against # 19 Budinger/Evans, United States 3-0
7/5/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Winner 1	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Budinger/Evans	7	21-14, 21-12	0:31
3/7/24	FIVB	Elite16 Doha	Pool D	Cottafava/Nicolai	4	Budinger/Evans	13, Q3	21-19, 21-19	0:38
6/16/23	FIVB	Challenge Jurmala	Pool C	Cottafava/Nicolai	3	Budinger/Evans	10	17-21, 21-17, 15-10	0:46
Lead the series against # 22 Bassereau/Lyneel, France 2-0
9/29/23	FIVB	Elite16 Paris	Pool C	Cottafava/Nicolai	6	Bassereau/Lyneel	11	21-13, 21-18	0:31
4/27/23	FIVB	Elite16 Uberlândia	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Bassereau/Lyneel	16, Q8	21-17, 23-21	0:37
Lead the series against # 23 Grimalt/Grimalt, Chile 3-0
7/4/24	FIVB	Elite16 Gstaad	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Grimalt/Grimalt	8	18-21, 21-18, 15-11	0:49
10/2/22	FIVB	Paris Elite 16	Bronze Medal	Cottafava/Nicolai	3	Grimalt/Grimalt	7	21-16, 21-16	0:38
5/7/22	FIVB	Doha Challenge	Winner 2	Cottafava/Nicolai	9	Grimalt/Grimalt	15, Q2	21-14, 21-18	0:35
Lead the series against # 24 Carracher/Nicolaidis, Australia 1-0
7/29/24	FIVB	Olympic Games Paris 2024	Pool A	Cottafava/Nicolai	12	Carracher/Nicolaidis	24	21-19, 21-18	0:39