Aside from the more traditional sports that our boys pride themselves on playing there lies a sport which, despite being the most land-locked school in the country, we somehow seem to excel at! We are talking about beach volleyball, which is always a highlight in the sporting calendar for the boys. 
On 28 June, 10 boys (two teams including subs) headed down to the Yellowave Beach Sports Venue on Brighton Beach (Brighton College’s training ground) for the National Independent Schools Beach Volleyball Tournament. The four-a-side round robin competition was, this year, against Brighton College (hosts), London Academy of Excellence, Reeds School, Sevenoaks and Chatham and Clarendon Grammar School (CCG).
The day started at 6.15am for the journey down to Brighton, not returning until 8.15pm. The spectators were out in full force as the boys sweated it out under the blazing sun, idyllically fitting in with the beach volleyball image, but making for tough conditions for the players. A lot of water was drunk and sun cream applied!
The two teams played eight timed round-robin matches, both teams playing with skill and in good spirits. The Bedford A team remained unbeaten throughout, going on to win the tournament and be crowned the U18 National Beach Volleyball Champions 2023!
Panha Chea, Captain of the A Team, commented, “Before we played, we, as a team, agreed that we will all have fun regardless of the result. Our team played with the mindset of achieving team spirit, which I think was the main reason for our success. My most enjoyable aspect of this tournament would be the pressure as it built up our excitement and anticipation. Even though the tournament was intense, it felt like a day out with my friends to the beach. We left Bedford as volleyball players and came back as the U18 National Champions!”