Melissa Humana-Paredes doesn’t get many chances to play beach volleyball on home soil. When she does, Montréal has been a pretty good place to make the most of it.
Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson return to Parc Jean-Drapeau this week from Aug. 19-23 for the Montréal Elite16, where they’ll look to build on last year’s title.
The Canadian pair beat Germany’s Svenja Müller and Cinja Tillmann in straight sets, 21-15, 22-20, to win the 2025 event — their first title together.
For Humana-Paredes, the chance to compete at home remains a big deal.
“It is so nice to be able to play on home soil because we rarely get to do it,” Humana-Paredes said. “Montréal, especially, they show up. They are some of the best sports fans that I’ve seen and been able to play in front of.”
Olympic silver medallist Melissa Humana-Paredes joins Donnovan Bennett to discuss Canada’s road to LA 2028, competing on home soil in Montreal, and the growth of women’s sports.
For Humana-Paredes, it’s also exciting to see the growing support for women’s sports across Canada. From hockey and soccer to basketball, more fans are showing up — and she believes the momentum is only getting started.
“This is a momentum that we’ve been waiting for and we’re going to continue to ride,” she said. “It’s just a really proud feeling to be a female athlete and to see people show up and continue to show up.”
She wants that type of momentum to last well beyond her own career.
While Montréal is the focus now, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson are already thinking about their next Olympic run.
LA 2028 is about two years away, but with Olympic qualification beginning in 2027, the planning has already started.
“LA 2028 has been top of mind for a long time now,” Humana-Paredes said. “It goes by really fast. The rollercoaster is starting, and the journey is well underway.”
While it’s easy to get caught up with what’s coming up, the trick is not thinking too far ahead.
Humana-Paredes knows there is still plenty of volleyball between now and Los Angeles, so the pair is breaking the Olympic cycle into smaller pieces.
“We do break it down because it can be a lot; it can be overwhelming,” she said.
Back to their roots
For 2026, that has meant getting back to their roots.
The pair reunited with their former coaching staff in Los Angeles, creating a familiar environment as they build toward another Olympic Games.
“It’s like restarting with familiar people and familiar faces,” she said. “But it’s not like we’re going backwards. We’re going forwards.”
The results have followed.
After taking silver at the Saquarema Elite in April, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson won gold at the Elite16 event in Ostrava, Czechia — their eighth podium and fourth gold medal on the Beach Pro Tour.
It was another step forward for a pair that has steadily climbed the podium over the past few years. They won bronze in 2023, silver in 2024 and are now building on the Olympic silver medal they won in Paris.
For Humana-Paredes, the medals are part of something bigger.
“Everything is preparation. Everything is feedback,” she said. “We’re always just trying to get better and trying to grow and lay a foundation.”
That’s what 2026 is about.
“Getting back to our roots and really fine-tuning,” she said. “The closer we get to LA, the more we start to dial in,” she said. “Once 2028 hits, we’re full guns blazing.”
Home Olympics in the making
An LA Olympics would also bring Humana-Paredes back to a place that has become a second home.
She has trained in Los Angeles throughout much of her professional career, making the prospect of competing there especially meaningful.
“This will be my third Olympic run training out of Los Angeles,” she said. “It feels kind of like a second home at this point.”
And there may not be a better place to host beach volleyball.
Humana-Paredes trains in Hermosa Beach, where the sport is part of everyday life. Players of all ages are constantly on the sand.
“This is where people really appreciate beach volleyball,” she said. “They’re playing. They’re messing around. They’re having a good time.”
Marquee moment for the sport
Beach volleyball is expected to be held in Long Beach, another Southern California community with a strong connection to the sport.
“I know they’re going to do a really great job,” she said. “Beach volleyball, especially in California and Southern California, is going to be a marquee event for sure.”
For now, though, Humana-Paredes gets to enjoy something just as meaningful: playing in front of Canadians.
Montréal is only one stop on the road to LA, but for a player who spends so much of her career away from home, it’s one she clearly doesn’t want to take for granted.
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