Secrets of Coaching Success: Jetmund Berntsen (Part 2)
Interview
There are many important differences between the jobs of a volleyball coach and a beach volleyball coach, but what they certainly have in common is their key role in a team’s success. To help the fans understand that role and gain more in-depth knowledge about what it takes to be a successful coach from the first-hand source, I present some of Europe’s accomplished examples in the coaching profession from both disciplines and try to pick their brains for insider info in my Secrets of Coaching Success series.
The seventh episode features one the world’s most successful beach volleyball coaches today, Norway’s Jetmund Berntsen. He coaches the Beachvolley Vikings and, most importantly, the world’s best men’s pair - Olympic, world and four-time European champions Anders Mol & Christian Sorum. Last year, Berntsen also led the Norwegian men’s national team to the top of the podium at the CEV Beachvolley Nations Cup in Vienna. Here is the full interview he gave for cev.eu.
What prompted you to become a beach volleyball coach?
“I actually grew up doing lots of activities and everything with a ball was always the most fun. We played football in the summer and volleyball in the winter. And in between we did all sorts of other sports. In Naustdal, a very small place where I lived until 1993, we had a really strong women’s team, Tambarskjelvar, with several national team players, including my sister Merita. And the closest city Forde had the best men’s team, also with professional players. This gave me the opportunity to watch and play top-level volleyball from a really young age. I started with organized volleyball when I was seven years old. From 1990 I also started playing beach in the summer. A few years later, I played on the national indoor team with Jan Kvalheim, who Norway’s first winner On the World Tour in 1994. At the same time, my sister fell in love with my national team coach and beach volleyball partner Kare Mol. They started their journey towards the Atlanta 1996 Olympics. My coaching interest was inspired by Kare. From that time on, for me, everything was about indoor and beach volleyball, and it still is...
“Volleyball and beach volleyball have always been my lifestyle. Since the beginning, my dream has always been to do volleyball for a living, not necessarily as a player, but working with kids, youths or seniors. I have always been a coach for younger teams, even when I played at the top level in Norway myself. I really enjoy working with youngsters, and that’s why I spent a lot of time at Toppvolley Norge in the last five years. I can recommend every coach in the world to come visit this school. The culture, the knowledge, the atmosphere and the people there give you a lot of energy.”
Tell us the fairy-tale story of the Beachvolley Vikings.
“Kare and I got kids at the same time and spent a lot of time together. I could follow him closely, have good discussions, and try things out at the start of my coaching career. I followed the World Tour in Stavanger every year from 1999 through 2014 and I still remember how Anders (Mol) told us during the 2009 World Championship in Stavanger, ‘I will be the youngest player ever, to play at a World Tour Grand Slam event. He was 12 years old. In 2014, he and Mathias (Berntsen) qualified for the main draw in Stavanger. They were only 16 and 18 years old and the youngest team that ever played a Grand Slam. They also qualified for the Youth Olympics in Nanjing, and the year after they won the 2015 U20 European Championship in Larnaca.
“The journey had started. We had a group of talented young players, coaches with a lot of experience and knowledge. The senior national team did not perform as well as they had used to and didn’t manage to qualify for the 2016 Olympics. Our young players finished high school (ToppVolley Norge, the best volleyball school in the world), and we had to give them the best program. And we started the Beachvolley Vikings together. We knew we had something special in this group. We started out with three players: Anders, Mathias and Christian (Sorum). Our fourth player Hendrik had to finish school and his indoor season in Hawaii. The main goal was to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
“The first years, 2016 and 2017, we tested all combinations trying to find the best team. It was not easy, because everyone performed so well. We took medals at youth championships with different teams, we qualified for elite World Tour events with different teams, and it was not easy to pick out the best team for the future. Finally, we concluded that it had to be Anders and Christian together. They had some amazing chemistry and the same understanding of the game. Years later, it’s just unbelievable even for us - not only their results, but how they have taken beach volleyball to a new level.
“Winning almost everything from 2018 to 2022 has been amazing, but I still cherish the first World Tour victory at the Gstaad five-star in 2018 as the best memory: a small team from Norway, with two players and a coach, beating the rest of the world’s elite. I think after winning the match point in the final I kissed Nika Fleiss, who was sitting next to me. It was an ‘out-of-body experience’! And I don’t forget the semifinal of the same tournament. Christian’s defense on that match point for Gibb & Crabb! Even their coach Rich Lambourne thought it was a win for them! It was a really emotional tournament and the start of believing we could win everything!”
What was it like coaching a team to heights such as Olympic, world and European titles? How recognizable did this coaching success make you in Norway? No doubt, Anders and Christian are celebrities, but are you?
“It’s always fantastic to be a part of a team that performs at such a high level and wins titles. The last four years have just been an amazing journey for all the Vikings and staff. We are well known in the Norwegian volleyball family and with the results of the Vikings more people are getting curious. Unfortunately, in Norway, winter sports and football take up almost everything in media. It is so traditional and really hard to change. Even in big sports like tennis and golf, we have top-10 athletes in the world, but still cross-country skiers and ski jumpers are the ‘super heroes’. But we work hard every day to make the sport grow and maybe some day…”
Unlike indoor volleyball, coaching during beach volleyball matches is generally not allowed. What is the reasoning behind this rule and would you change it?
“I don’t know the reason behind the rule, and for me, it’s not important to change it. A lot of coaches talk too much and that will not always make the teams and the level better. We have always said that beach volleyball is a technical and mental sport. Tactics never win games. One of the things I like the most about beach volleyball games is all the momentum changers during a match, and how players handle it. That’s the fascination and the beauty of the sport for me. I guess the coach will be more involved in the coming years. Let’s keep it at time-outs and between the sets. That can work out well.”
Because of that rule, beach volleyball coaches are hardly ever in the media spotlight and generally unknown to the wide public. Is this good or bad for the sport?
“Hard to say... Maybe it will look more professional with coaches on the sideline? This is a discussion that has been going on for so many years and most of the countries want the coaches to be more included. Coaching during time-outs and between the sets can give fans and media some more information. It can be good for the sport, but I think it will take something away from the game. But as I said, keep the coaching for the time-outs and between the sets and we are all good.”
#BeachVolleyball
