RIO DE JANEIRO – At Copacabana Beach the party always goes late into the night. And at the Olympics so does the beach volleyball. When Canada's Sarah Pavan and Heather Bansley took to the court at the Olympic beach volleyball venue on Tuesday night the clock had just struck midnight. That’s pretty late to start a game, no? 
 
“Absolutely, yeah, I've never played this late before,” said Bansley, a 28-year-old from Waterdown, Ont. “As an athlete, you know, your adrenaline kicks in once it's go time so that helped us.”
 
Late starts are the norm for beach volleyball games at the Olympics as television executives aim to increase viewership on the West Coast of the United States, where the sport is extremely popular. At the London Games four years ago, matches started at 11 p.m. Now, the envelope is being pushed even more. 
 
Canada's Josh Binstock says some competitors have been struggling with the schedule. 
 
“You have to, obviously, change your circadian rhythm and the eating patterns and not only being awake at this time, but being ready for high performance,” the 35-year-old Toronto native explained. “Normally on the world tour it's early morning starts and you're in bed really early. For myself, I like it. I'm a night person.”
 
Binstock and his partner Sam Schachter practised at 11 p.m. on Tuesday to help prepare for their must-win game against Austria, which will start at midnight as part of Wednesday's evening session. 
 
Late starts are simply part of the party culture at Copacabana Beach. Between night matches, the main stadium lights go down, strobe lights take over and music blares. 
 
In between sets, Samba dancers come out to rev up the crowd. A public address announcer is constantly offering observations on the match and interacting with the fans. The crowd is always engaged, because volleyball is among the most popular sports in Brazil, perhaps second only to soccer. 
 
“Brazil is beach volleyball,” said Canadian coach Steve Anderson. “This is one of the birthplaces of beach volleyball and there's a lot of expertise down here. It's embedded in the culture.”
 
The 12,000-seat venue on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean has become one of the most popular places at the Rio Olympics. 
 
“There are so many Brazilian fans here even tonight and there's not even a Brazilian team playing,” said Bansley, “so they're just fans of the sport and they're all very knowledgeable and they're into it. It's part of their culture so it's a lot of fun playing here."
 
Beach volleyball has been in the Olympics since 1996, but this is just the second time the event has been held on an actual beach. The other occasion was Sydney 2000 when matches were played on Bondi Beach.  
 
Considering the popularity of the sport in Brazil and the status of Copacabana as arguably the world's most famous beach, Canadian athletes are soaking up the atmosphere as much as possible.
 
“It's amazing,” said Pavan, a 29-year-old from Kitchener, Ont. “It's the birthplace of beach volleyball. It's such an iconic spot to be able to play our sport and on such at a grand stage at the Olympics. It's unbelievable.”
 
“Yeah, it's surreal for sure,” said Binstock. “Playing beach volleyball at the Olympics is special as it is, but being on a legendary beach like this, you couldn't ask for a better opportunity.”
 
So far the Canadians are feeding off the energy. On Tuesday, Calgary's Ben Saxton and Red Deer's Chaim Schalk upset Brazilians Pedro Salgado and Evandro Goncalves.
 
Brazil is favoured to be on the podium in both the men's and women's competitions.
 
“You can kind of tell that maybe they're not at their top level like they normally are,” said Binstock when asked about Brazil's four teams at the Olympics. “I'm sure they're feeling the pressure from everyone around them, because they are expected to win gold. I don't think there's any denying that for them.”
 
So, if the Brazilians slip, can one of the four Canadian squads in Rio capitalize and perhaps help the country win its first beach volleyball medal since Atlanta 1996 when Mark Heese and John Child took home the bronze? 
 
“I wouldn't bet against the teams that we have,” said Anderson. “At the Olympic Games, anything can happen.”