How the Sydney 2000 Games ignited Taliqua Clancy’s Olympic Beach Volleyball journey

It’s unsurprising Taliqua Clancy was sporty from a young age given she was born in a regional town that has produced some of Queensland’s greatest athletes.

“Kingaroy is so competitive. There’s been so many amazing athletes come out of the South Burnett,” says Clancy.

She played almost every sport growing up but only started indoor volleyball in grade eight at the suggestion of one of her Aunties.

“Honesty I’d barely even heard of it. It hurt. It definitely hurt on my arms to try and dig a ball. But it was really cool. It was a completely new skill and I think that’s what drew me into it very quickly,” reflects Clancy.

At 16, Taliqua turned down a netball scholarship to accept a volleyball scholarship with the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS).

It was here she played beach volleyball for the very first time.

“I absolutely hated it. I couldn’t move on the sand. That’s the country girl coming out in me. But that challenging side was completely new and I quickly fell in love with it,” she admits.

Clancy’s love for the sport was matched with talent. She reached the quarterfinals on her Olympic debut in Rio 2016, won silver medals at the Gold Coast 2018 and Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, before upsetting the world number one team at the Tokyo Olympics to stand on the podium with a silver medal.

To help Clancy qualify for her third Olympic Games and bring home another Olympic medal, the 32-year-old has been working closely with coach, Brad Tutton, and the QAS’ high performance team.

“Coaches sacrifice so much, especially when they don’t get to step out on the court,” says Clancy.

QAS dietician Rebecca Disher is a more recent addition to Taliqua’s performance support team, which also includes strength and conditioning, physio, sports scientists and health practitioners.

“Bec’s already had such a huge impact with that small amount of time we’ve been working with her,” says the dual Olympian.

“We’ve been working a lot with recovery fuelling. We’ve also been working with nutrition around flights and travel, and also how to boost her immune system before she starts travelling,” says Rebecca Disher.

Disher helps plan for the limited food options available in some of the countries Clancy travels to for six months of the year, to keep Clancy fit and healthy.

“In a game they can go to two sets or they can go to three sets. Each set can be longer than the other. And their breaks are only one-minute long between sets, which really minimises what we can get into them. So we really try to look for some quick, easy options that they can digest really quickly, but also that Taliqua can talk to her beach volleyball partner while they’re trying to refuel and rehydrate and get back on that sand,” says Disher.

Luckily for Clancy, her QAS dietician is a big supporter of her favourite cheat meal: a bowl of nachos.

“Oh it’s great!” says Disher.

“Sodium, carbs, we can work with it. Especially if there’s a preferred food, we like to make sure there’s always preferred foods in the day-to-day.”

Clancy’s work with her dietician has helped set her up for her third Olympic Games, 16 years after she first accepted a scholarship with the QAS.

When asked how it feels to be following in Cathy Freeman’s footsteps, Clancy says it is still surreal.

“I don’t feel like I’ve earnt that just yet. Because of how special Cathy is and all the other athletes that have come before me,” says Clancy.

“But I really truly believe that representation does matter. I definitely know my dream wouldn’t have started if I wasn’t watching Cathy Freeman at the 2000 Olympics.”