Beach volleyball was first played as an official sport at the 1996 Olympic Games. Online there are many references to a beach volleyball demonstration tournament four years earlier at the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992, with Sinjin Smith and Randy Stoklos winning the men's tournament, and Karolyn Kirby and Nancy Reno winning the women's.

A search of the official report only lists three demonstration sports, and beach volleyball is not one of them. According to the report, beach volleyball was submitted as an exhibition sport, but ultimately no exhibition sports went ahead. If there was a tournament, it was not an actual Olympic Games demonstration event, but just held at the same time.

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Volleyball was also a demonstration sport as part of a children's sports demonstration in 1924.