Festive Walk of Fame ceremony welcomes return of Manhattan Beach Open

Athletes and fans packed the Manhattan Beach Pier on Thursday, Aug. 13, for the opening celebration and Volleyball Walk of Fame Red Carpet Ceremony, kicking off the 66th Manhattan Beach Open.

Cheers and applause were frequent during the hourlong ceremony late Thursday when the plaques were unveiled on the pier.

The free beach volleyball tournament runs Friday through Sunday, Aug. 14-16, following Thursday’s Red Carpet Ceremony honoring the 2025 champions.

Plaques were unveiled honoring defending Manhattan Beach Open champions Taryn Kloth Brasher and Kristen Nuss Cruz, as well as Chase Budinger and Miles Evans, on the Manhattan Beach Pier.

The awardees — all of whom competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics —  praised others for their success, including coaches, spouses and teammates.

And all will be competing again this weekend with the female team looking for a three-peat.

“The most important person in my life,” said Budinger, “ is my wife.” Budinger and wife Jessica Fine married in 2021 and they have two children, Beckham and Blake. “She never complains and … I love you so much.”

As for his on-the-court partner: “Miles,” Budinger added, “what a road it’s been. There were a lot of ups and downs but when we played, we played great.”

When it was his turn, Evans turned to Budinger and said: “Thank you for teaming up with me.”

As for the women? “They were impossible to beat,” declared their coach, Drew Hamilton.

This was the second time this team received the pier plaques and they are aiming for a third. Brasher, a South Dakota native, said she’d never forget walking down the pier after seeing the plaque for the first time.

She thanked her husband — she married Eric Brasher last year in Sioux Falls — and her volleyball partner, “Kristen, my best friend.”

When Nuss Cruz took the stage, she shared the memory of the push — literally — that her mom gave her the first time she arrived at volleyball class.

“Just give it a try,” her mom told her, “and get out of the car,” she said.

During Thursday’s pier ceremony, sponsored by the Association of Volleyball Professionals, the opening qualifier match was played, officially kicking off the competition.

Beach volleyball is a game that’s now deeply embedded in the South Bay beach culture. So the Manhattan Beach Open — called pro beach volleyball’s “granddaddy of them all” —  rolls out a weekend-long gathering of top competition that draws tens of thousands of folks to the beach.

They come to cheer and to watch the free games played on multiple courts along the sand, features the best of the best competitors in the sport.

It’s also hailed as one of the biggest beach volleyball parties in the region.

The tournament was established in 1960 and is considered the longest-running and most prestigious professional beach volleyball event in the country.

Games run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. And along with the intense competition, there are food vendors and live music.

General admission is free and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Organizers recommend attendees arrive early and bring sunscreen.

Avp