The roles of an indoor volleyball coach and a beach volleyball coach have significant differences, but they share one crucial aspect: their vital contribution to a team`s triumph. To help enthusiasts understand this role and gain firsthand perspectives on what it takes to excel as a coach, I`m highlighting some of Europe`s successful coaches from both disciplines. My series, “Secrets of Coaching Success,” aims to extract valuable insights from their experiences.
In the seventh installment of this series, I feature one of the world`s most prominent beach volleyball coaches today. He is intrinsically linked to the immense success of Anders Mol & Christian Sorum, which speaks volumes in itself. Let`s delve deeper into the story of Jetmund Berntsen, coach of the current world and Olympic champions from Norway.
Born in 1973, Jetmund was the second of five siblings. Remarkably, all five became national team players in either volleyball or beach volleyball. The eldest, Merita, now widely known as Anders Mol`s mother, was the most accomplished athlete among them, representing Norway in beach volleyball at the Atlanta 1996 Olympics and finishing ninth.
Growing up, young Jetmund enjoyed various ball games, favoring football in the summer and volleyball in the winter. Following Merita`s path, he began organized volleyball training at age seven. By 17, he also started playing beach volleyball during the summer months.
His interest in beach volleyball was also sparked by his indoor national teammate Jan Kvalheim, who was already an internationally recognized professional beach player, and significantly by his brother-in-law, Merita`s husband, Kare Mol. Jetmund and Kare even teamed up, securing a national championship bronze medal in 1995. Berntsen participated in a couple of FIVB World Tour events, the Marseille Open in 1997 and the Stavanger Open in 1999. His indoor playing career reached its peak approximately a decade later when he won the Norwegian national title and cup with the Forde team.
Merita Mol`s journey to the Atlanta Olympics, with her husband Kare Mol coaching her, inspired Berntsen`s own interest in coaching. As they raised their children together and spent considerable time side-by-side, Jetmund had the opportunity to observe Kare closely, seek answers to his questions, and experiment as he embarked on his coaching career.
Eventually, all five of the Mol children and both of the Berntsen children became involved in the sport, turning beach volleyball into a family endeavor known as the Beachvolley Vikings. This started in 2016 with three players: Kare`s son Anders Mol, Jetmund`s son Mathias Berntsen (who had already won their first major international event as a team, the 2015 CEV U20 European Championship), and the “adopted” Christian Sorum.
Success continued for the young Vikings. Anders Mol secured the continental U20 title again in 2016, this time with Christian Sorum`s younger brother Aleksander. Later that year, he claimed the U22 title with Christian and, in 2017, earned U22 silver alongside Mathias Berntsen. That same year, Anders also achieved his first senior international podiums: a gold at the Ljubljana Masters on the CEV European Tour with Christian and a bronze at the Espinho two-star on the FIVB World Tour with Mathias.
For the BeachVolley Vikings, this period was still one of experimentation, with Jetmund Berntsen and the rest of the coaching staff exploring different player combinations. It soon became evident that Anders and Christian possessed a shared understanding of the game and an exceptional chemistry that could elevate their play to extraordinary heights.
Mol & Sorum`s significant breakthrough occurred in 2018, marked by five consecutive top-level victories: the Gstaad five-star, the CEV European Championship in the Hague, the Vienna five-star, the World Tour Finals in Hamburg, and the Las Vegas four-star. Their remarkable journey had truly begun.
In 2019, Mol & Sorum added six more gold medals from the seven World Tour finals they reached. The Vikings also secured bronze at the FIVB World Championship in Hamburg and the World Tour Finals in Rome. They finished as World Tour season champions in both 2018 and 2019. Adding to their already impressive collection, they won two more consecutive European titles at Moscow 2019 and Jurmala 2020.
2021 proved to be another landmark year for the Beachvolley Vikings. For Mol & Sorum, it began with back-to-back four-star titles on the World Tour and culminated spectacularly with Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020. They followed this historic win with their fourth consecutive EuroBeachVolley title in Vienna and gold at the final edition of the World Tour Finals in Cagliari.
At this point, Kare Mol transitioned, allowing Jetmund Berntsen to take the lead role within their coaching setup. The narrative of success continued into 2022. The inaugural season of the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour saw Mol & Sorum win three Elite16 gold medals, but the ultimate achievement came at the World Championship in Rome, where they added the world title to their decorated careers. Following their victory at the Paris Elite16 in October, the pair reclaimed the number one position in the FIVB World Ranking and have held it ever since.
Mol & Sorum finished third at EuroBeachVolley 2022 in Munich, ending their incredible streak of four straight continental titles. However, the CEV BeachVolley Nations Cup in Vienna provided another highlight for the Beachvolley Vikings in 2022. With Jetmund Berntsen serving as head coach of the Norwegian men`s national team (comprising Anders Mol, Christian Sorum, Hendrik Mol, and Mathias Berntsen), they claimed the top spot on the podium at the event`s debut.
The pairing of Mathias Berntsen with Anders`s older brother Hendrik Mol also had a solid year on the Beach Pro Tour, earning silver at the Agadir Challenge and concluding the year ranked 13th globally.
Jetmund Berntsen`s coaching achievements are not limited to the men`s game. At the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games, he guided Emilie Olimstad and his daughter Frida Berntsen to bronze medals.
Since 2018, Jetmund Berntsen has also worked at ToppVolley Norge, a specialized boarding school. This ideal environment allows promising volleyball and beach volleyball athletes to combine their high school education with intensive athletic training.
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Jetmund Bentsen
Beach volleyball coach
Continue reading: Secrets of Coaching Success: Jetmund Berntsen (Part 2)
Previous in the series: Secrets of Coaching Success: Aigars Birzulis
Jasper Thornfield 
Finley Blackwood