A towering Ayrshire duo have set their sights on making the Scottish Beach Volleyball team for the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this summer.
Ayr’s Callum Stewart, 30, and Ross McKelvie, 27, both former pupils at Belmont Academy, are hoping to turn professional on the back of this summer's showpiece.
Callum, (6ft 3in) and Ross (6ft 6in) are a big deal in the sport.
“We’re just trying our best to raise the profile of the sport and help develop it," Callum said. "They had it for the first time at the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, Australia, in 2018.
“It’s being hosted in Birmingham at the end of July and we’re fighting to get a Scotland team there. We’d love to be there.”
The duo, who have been beach volleyball partners since 2018, have two selection processes to overcome and hope to find out their fate in April.
In the last few months, defender Callum and blocker Ross, who is a PE teacher at Irvine Academy, have been everywhere, honing their skills and notching up some encouraging results against some formidable partnerships from around Europe.
They now sit in the UK top five rankings and reached inside the top 300 in the world while secured fourth-placed finishes at the Bournemouth and London Grand Slams.
However, the biggest prize – appearing at the Commonwealths – is the one they now have their eyes on.
E-commerce wizard Callum said: “It would be cool to play at Birmingham and hopefully get members of the family down there too.”
With a little grant help from Sportscotland and Scottish Volleyball, the pair were able to test themselves recently against European competition in both Switzerland and Portugal, where their reputations were enhanced with some good performances.
In nearly every tournament they played from May to September last year, they reached the semi-finals, or better, in the world and UK tours.
The duo are now the top-ranked Scottish team on the UK tour.
The boys are sponsored by Airbnb which helps towards competition travel, training and accommodation.
“It’s a tough sport to get to the highest level,” admitted Callum. “But it’s been shown by others such as the Norwegians, who won men’s gold in Tokyo, that it can be done.”
Callum and Ross would love to hear from any businesses who may be willing to sponsor them.
To get in touch, email Callum at callumjamesstewart@googlemail.com
The pair also have a social media presence on Instagram at @beachvolleyscots - https://www.instagram.com/beachvolleyscots/
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