THE VOLLEYTALK PODCAST: Beach Volleyball Conversations with Tasha Mae

“Life is love, and it’s just about getting around to it.”

Today's guest is Alexandra Jupiter, beach volleyball star from France!!! In this episode, Alexandra talks about:-

- How she disciplines herself to make sure she does the things she needs to

- How she actually started beach volleyball when she moved to the US at the age of 14, and she started it together with her mum!

- Why she finds inspiration in the queen Serena Williams- Alexandra talks about body image, self-acceptance, self-love

- The process of how she went from an “individual player” to a “team player”

- How she takes in the surroundings before her game starts to get used to the situation

- Why breathing is the most important thing in tough situations

- What winning the Mediterranean Games meant to herself and her team

- How she’s slowly using social media to grow her influence in beach volleyball in France

- Her favorite places to play in competitions! (Hint: involves Austria, Norway, Japan and Australia 😉)

- Why her ‘poker face’ has helped her a lot in her career

- But also what she wished people knew more about her behind her poker face

- Why she would tell her younger self to “trust more”

And sooo much more! This was really a conversation where Alexandra went deeeep and shared a lot of personal stuff! I really hope it inspires you to think a little differently about your game and life just like it did for me!

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Alexandra, and learn a lot from her!

Follow Alexandra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jups90/

"Just believe in God, believe in your destiny- and good things will come!”

Today's guest is Cherif Younousse Samba, beach volleyball player from Qatar, and they are currently ranked number 2 in the world! In this episode, Cherif talks about:-

- Why he can’t do a bench press but he’s still one of the most lethal spikers in the world!

- Why he moved from US to Qatar

- He never played indoor volleyball before!!

- How he feels not only playing against but beating his childhood heroes (Phil Dalhausser, Alison, Clements/Doppler)

- The secret behind their team’s incredible success in the recent months + the mentality they had to for three finals in a row in Cancun!

- How he purposely creates a scene in the court just to spice things up 🔥 (this is hilarious)

- The little beef he and Adrian Carambula had in Cancun 😂

- His mentality leading up to his second Olympic games

- What his plans are after he retires from beach volleyball

- How he is the only person in his family that does sports, and he has proved to them that he has made it

- Patience, patience, patience is key

- What the only difference is among players in the highest level

And sooo much more! This was one of the funniest, craziest and most exciting talks I have ever done, and I hope that you enjoyed it and learned a great deal from Cherif!

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Cherif, and learn a lot from him!

Follow Cherif on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherifqatar/

"Laugh more, worry less and just enjoy the journey you’re in!”

Today's guest is Urte Andriukaityte, beach volleyball player from Lithuania!! In this episode, Urte talks about:-

- Why she refers to herself as a “stubborn dreamer”

- How she accidentally started beach volleyball even though she HATED summer!

- How beach volleyball itself and her family is her biggest encouragement and inspiration

- Why she believes warm up without music shouldn’t exist at all!

- How she takes a step back and looks at the bigger picture to calm herself down during tight situations in game

- Her training and daily routine as a Lithuanian beach volleyball player

- Her hopes for the future of her career- becoming an Olympian, making this a full-time career and playing at the highest level!

- How she is staying true to herself while still growing beach volleyball through her social media platform

- Why “stubbornness” is NOT a bad thing to Urte

- The advice she would give to her younger self (a must for anxious people and worriers)

- What surviving 13 car accidents has taught her about life!! (CRAZY!)

And sooo much more! This was a really chill and fun chat with Urte, and I also learned a great deal about Lithuania!

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Urte, and learn a lot from her!

Follow Urte on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/urteandriukaityte/

"A lot of times, to stay true to your journey, you just gotta make it happen!"

Today's guest is Kingsley Tay, beach volleyball star from Singapore!!! In this episode, Kingsley talks about:-

- His journey from volleyball into beach volleyball

- How Taylor Crabb’s “defence system” just blows his mind

- How he looks for traits in people and applies it to his own life: Take the best, throw the rest!

- His “arousal theory” approach when going into a game! (This is super cool)

- How he has to learn to manage his own expectations of himself and others so as not to create a toxic environment

- His current training routine as a beach volleyball player, student and coach!

- His dream of winning an Olympic medal one day

- How he and his friends started “Revollve Volleyball Academy” to grow the sport in Singapore

- How when he was younger, he was afraid of expressing himself and what that has made him realize

- Why he recommends everyone to read the book “Sacred Hoops” by legendary coach Phil Jackson

- What he would be if he was not a beach volleyball player

And sooo much more! This is probably one of the most fun and funny interviews I have ever had, and I hope you enjoy and laugh along with us as you dig in to Kingsley’s wisdom 💪

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Kingsley, and learn a lot from him!

Follow Kingsley on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kingsleytzh/

Check out his volleyball academy: https://www.instagram.com/revollvevba/

"You gotta make your journey your own, and always be true to yourself!"

Today's guest is Taliqua Clancy, one of the best beach volleyball players ever from Australia!!! In this episode, Taliqua talks about:-

- How she HATED beach volleyball when she first started it

- How since young she always knew she wanted to be an Olympian

- Her special “sarong taboo” (this one is really funny and cool)

- What was going through her mind during the epic finals in Cancun when the ref made the wrong call TWICE

- Her training routine now leading up to the Olympics

- How she and Mariafe developed such a strong bond, and her tips to strengthen your relationship with your partner

- How she is using her platform as the first Aboriginal volleyball player to represent Australia at the Olympics to inspire other Aboriginal communities

- What she thinks her strengths are both as a person and an athlete

- and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was a really fun and interesting chat with Taliqua, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Taliqua, and learn a lot from her!

Follow Taliqua on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taliqua/

"Treat others the way you want to be treated yourself"

Today's guest is Hendrik Mol, none other than the Beach Volley Viking from Norway!!! In this episode, Hendrik talks about:-

- How he was literally born into beach volleyball

- How having his parents as his coach is sometimes a “double-edged sword”

- The painful experience of losing his one chance to compete in the Olympics, but what that has taught him

- Why the Beach Volley Vikings is one of the best sideout teams in the world

- Some of his best memories along his journey

- How it was like studying in ToppVolleyNorge (the only volleyball school in Norway!)

- What he thinks his strengths are both as an athlete and a person, and how that has made him who he is

- His hobbies outside of volleyball (listen to find out how they make their awesome vlogs!)

- and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was a really fun and interesting chat with Hendrik, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Hendrik, and learn a lot from him!

Follow Hendrik on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hendriknmol/

Check out the Beach Volley Vikings: https://www.instagram.com/beachvolleyvikings/

"Just do good- because whatever good you do comes back to you"

Today's guest is Dhita Juliana, a beach volleyball star from Indonesia!! In this episode, Dhita talks about:-

- How she started as a beach volleyball player upon graduating high school

- How her coach, Agus Salim (who is also a legend) is her inspiration and he is like a father to them

- How she and her partner (Putu) as underdogs managed to beat the Japan team in the quarterfinals during the 2018 Asian Games, and went on to win the Bronze

- How she has such an admirable relationship with her partner (Putu) and how that has helped her overcome her nerves during competitions

- Her training routine

- How she injured herself ONE WEEK before the SEA Games and how she overcame that (this is just inspiring)

- How her champion mindset and patriotism drives her

- Her beach volleyball idol who happens to have the same name as her 😉

- The advice she would give to her younger self

- Her big dream of opening a restaurant for FREE to people

- Her plans after retiring from beach volleyball (this is SUPER COOL)

- and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was a really fun and interesting chat with Dhita, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*This podcast is recorded in Bahasa

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Dhita, and learn a lot from her!

Follow Dhita on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dhitajuliana/

Check out team Indonesia’s training: https://www.instagram.com/indonesiabeachvolleyball/

"If all the puzzle pieces fit, you go all in"

Today's guest is AJ Pareja, a beach volleyball player from the Philippines who is also a practising medical doctor!! In this episode, AJ talks about:-

- His transition from being the national indoor Philippines team captain to beach volleyball player

- How he kept “failing” to retire from volleyball

- His 3 main inspirations on this journey (*hint* includes Mark Burik from Better at Beach and Sam Pedlow from Canada 😉)

- How he manages to balance life as an athlete AND a practising medical doctor!

- How the Philippines had their national team tryouts for the very first time (king of the court format), and AJ feels good about it!

- How AJ calms himself down during tight situations in games

- His current training routine while Philippines is in a lockdown

- How AJ learned to develop the skill to say “no” (and how this REALLY helped him)

- His big dream that he wants to achieve in beach volleyball even though he is officially starting at 33!

- The advice he would give to his younger self (this one is really funny and controversial)

- Bonus: Doctor AJ is a Haikyuu fanatic! 😉 (he posts his Haikyuu reaction videos on Youtube!) #itsamortalsinifyouareavolleyballplayeranddontwatchhaikyuu

- and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was a really fun and interesting chat with Doctor AJ, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with AJ, and learn a lot from him!

Follow AJ on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajmpareja/

Subscribe to his Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG_GIPtzYA-zrVcNdoqJezw

"Give more love and care for each other more"

“I think I’m someone who likes to find the unknown- across all aspects in life.”

Today's guest is Zachery Schubert, a young Australian beach volleyball star who is making waves not only in beach volleyball, but insect farming too! In this episode, Zachery talks about:-

- His life and experiences as a beach volleyball player

- How the COVID19 has hit Australian Beach Volleyball team in one of the hardest ways possible, and how they are overcoming it

- The really special technique he uses to calm himself down during a tight match (this one is really cool)

- How the close relationship between Australian players has pushed them to the next level

- His insect business- Schubugs!!

- How crickets are one of the best foods for humans and the environment (I was really surprised on this one)

- His hopes for the future of his career

- The advice he would give to his younger self

- How recovery is number 1 for him

and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was a really fun and interesting chat with Zachery, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :')

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Zachery, and learn a lot from him!

Follow Zachery on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zachery.schubert/

Follow Schubugs on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schubugs/

Subscribe to his Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQp0nb_Tb21UltIyI6O29Lw

"If you have a dream, you gotta work for it"

Today's guest is Natali Flaviani, an Argentinian beach volleyball super mum who is living and training in Poland! In this episode, Natali talks about:-

- How she, an Argentinian player ended up in Poland

-The biggest difference between playing volleyball in Poland and Argentina

- How she balances her life as a mum and an athlete

-How she went from the Argentinian indoor national team to the beach team

- And how that transition was tough for her in the beginning and how she overcame it

- Her lovely and sweet family

- How to be innovative and set small goals step by step

and sooo much more! You definitely won't want to miss this one out! This was quite an interesting chat for me because Natali is just so awesome, and I really hope that it will impact you some way or another too.

*Please note that this is not an actual podcast with fancy equipment, so please forgive the mediocre audio quality and excessive laughing :') Also, please forgive the bad connection at times.

NONETHELESS, I hope that you enjoy this casual chat with Natali, and learn a lot from her!

Follow Natali on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flavia_9/