BEIJING The whole family gathered here this morning for Misty’s big match.
Even Mom, who died six years ago.
“It’s complete,” Misty May-Treanor said afterward, after she and partner Kerri Walsh again advanced to the Olympic beach volleyball gold medal match. “Everybody’s here now.”
Following a straight-set victory over Brazil, May-Treanor pulled out a small container – a 35mm film canister – and spread a pinch of her mother’s ashes on the Chaoyang Park sand.
Barbara May died of cancer in 2002.
May-Treanor, of Costa Mesa, did the same thing after the semifinal and final matches in Athens at the 2004 Games. She plans on doing it again here Thursday, following the finals.
“It was hard at first,” May-Treanor said of dealing with her mom’s passing. “But time makes it better. We got a chance to say goodbye and share a lot of time together at the end. I can look back on it now and be happy.”
She and Walsh cruised past Talita Rocha and Renata Ribeiro 21-12, 21-14. The Americans took control immediately and never let up.
They have now won 107 consecutive matches, their most recent loss coming last summer in Boston. And what, precisely, happened back then?
“I don’t remember,” May-Treanor said. “I don’t know why we lost that match that day. All we think about now is win, win, win.”
She has taken to painting her fingernails gold these days, May-Treanor and Walsh one victory away from defending the Olympic title they claimed in Athens.
They’ll play the Chinese duo of Xue Chen and Zhang Xi for the gold medal. The arena should be sold out, with the majority of the vocal support going to the host team.
The final will be played at 11 a.m. Thursday here or 8 p.m. Wednesday in Orange County. Prime time for NBC.
“It’s going to be a tough match,” May-Treanor said. “We know the crowd won’t be on our side. It’s gonna be a fun morning. I wish the whole Olympics could be here to see it.”The whole Olympics won’t be here, but Barbara May certainly will be.
