The coaching roles in indoor volleyball and beach volleyball, while distinct, share a fundamental similarity: their critical impact on a team`s success. To deepen enthusiasts` understanding of this vital position and offer firsthand insights into what constitutes effective coaching, this “Secrets of Coaching Success” series features prominent European coaches from both disciplines, aiming to extract their invaluable knowledge.
This seventh installment introduces Jetmund Berntsen, widely recognized as one of the most accomplished coaches in today`s beach volleyball arena. His instrumental role in the triumphs of Anders Mol and Christian Sorum, Norway’s reigning world and Olympic champions, speaks volumes about his expertise. Let`s delve deeper into the journey of this remarkable coach.
Born in 1973, Jetmund was the second of five siblings, all of whom eventually became national team players in either volleyball or beach volleyball. Merita, the eldest, now better known as Anders Mol’s mother, was the most successful athlete among them, representing Norway at the Atlanta 1996 beach event and achieving a ninth-place finish.
As a child, young Jetmund enjoyed various ball games, particularly football in the summer and volleyball in the winter. Following in his older sister’s footsteps, he began organized volleyball at seven. By the age of 17, he also started playing beach volleyball during the summer months.
His interest in beach volleyball was further cultivated by his indoor national team colleague Jan Kvalheim, an internationally acclaimed professional beach volleyball player at the time, and significantly by his brother-in-law, Kare Mol, Merita’s husband. Jetmund and Kare formed a team and even secured a national championship bronze medal in 1995. Berntsen also competed in a few FIVB World Tour events, including the 1997 Marseille Open and the 1999 Stavanger Open. His indoor playing career culminated approximately a decade later when he won the Norwegian national title and national cup with the Forde team.
Merita Mol’s path to the Atlanta Olympics, with her husband Kare Mol as her coach, ignited Berntsen’s own aspiration to coach. As they raised their children together, Jetmund spent considerable time observing Kare closely, gaining answers to his questions, and experimenting with strategies 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, transforming beach volleyball into a family venture: the Beachvolley Vikings. This initiative began in 2016 with three players: Kare’s son Anders Mol, Jetmund’s son Mathias Berntsen (who had already clinched their first major international title as a team, the 2015 CEV U20 European Championship), and Christian Sorum, who was “adopted” into the group.
The young Vikings continued to rack up achievements. Anders Mol again won the continental U20 title in 2016, this time alongside Christian Sorum’s younger brother, Aleksander. Later that year, Anders claimed the U22 title with Christian, and in 2017, he secured U22 silver with Mathias Berntsen. That same year, Anders also achieved his first senior international podiums, earning a gold medal at the Ljubljana Masters on the CEV European Tour with Christian and a bronze at the Espinho two-star event on the FIVB World Tour with Mathias.
For the BeachVolley Vikings, this period was still one of exploration, with Jetmund Berntsen and the rest of the coaching staff trying out various player pairings. They soon realized that Anders and Christian possessed a shared game vision and an exceptional chemistry that had the potential to elevate the sport to an entirely new level.
Mol & Sorum’s monumental breakthrough occurred in 2018 when they clinched five consecutive top-tier events: 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 another six gold medals from the seven World Tour finals they participated in. The Vikings also secured bronze at the FIVB World Championship in Hamburg and at the World Tour Finals in Rome. They were crowned World Tour season champions in both 2018 and 2019. To their already impressive achievements, they added two more consecutive European titles at Moscow 2019 and Jurmala 2020.
2021 proved to be another pivotal year for the Beachvolley Vikings. For Mol & Sorum, it began with back-to-back four-star titles on the World Tour and culminated in the Olympic gold medal at Tokyo 2020. They followed this with their fourth consecutive EuroBeachVolley title at the Vienna tournament and a gold medal at the final edition of the World Tour Finals in Cagliari.
At this point, Kare Mol stepped back, allowing Jetmund Berntsen to assume the primary leadership role within their coaching team. The narrative of success continued into 2022. The inaugural season of the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour saw Mol & Sorum secure three Elite16 gold medals, but their ultimate achievement came at the World Championship in Rome, where they added the world title to their illustrious collection. Following their success at the Paris Elite16 in October, the pair reclaimed the number one spot in the FIVB World Ranking and have maintained it ever since.
While Mol & Sorum finished “only” third at EuroBeachVolley 2022 in Munich, thus interrupting their incredible streak of four consecutive continental titles, the CEV BeachVolley Nations Cup in Vienna was another major highlight for the Beachvolley Vikings in 2022. With Jetmund Berntsen as the head coach of the Norwegian men’s national team (comprising Anders Mol, Christian Sorum, Hendrik Mol, and Mathias Berntsen), they emerged victorious at this inaugural event.
The partnership of Mathias Berntsen with Anders’s older brother, Hendrik Mol, also had a successful year on the Beach Pro Tour, earning silver at the Agadir Challenge and ultimately finishing the year ranked 13th globally.
Jetmund Berntsen’s coaching triumphs are not confined solely to the men’s division. 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 been involved with ToppVolley Norge, a private boarding school that provides aspiring volleyball and beach volleyball talents with a unique program combining high school education and rigorous athletic training.
