Young beach volleyballer Mireille Smith has her sights set firmly on the 2032 Brisbane Olympics as she continues to climb through the sport's ranks.
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Despite just turning 16, Mireille is Australia's highest ranked under-18 beach volleyballer after grabbing wins in two of the three Australian Junior Beach Volleyball Tour events.
Incredibly, the Nowra High School student's wins in Caloundra and Mollymook were followed up by a bronze medal in the open women's tournament in Mollymook earlier this year with partner Remy Song .
On the back of those results Mireille is the only NSW representative chosen to represent Australia in the Under 19 Asian Beach Volleyball Championships in Thailand from May 1 to 5.
It is a far cry from when Mireille started in the sport, playing on her home sand at Callala Beach with her sister Alexandria, also an accomplished volleyballer.
Despite her young age, Mireille was soon turning heads with her speed and agility over the sand, along with her skills at passing, setting and spiking.
Those skills have also transferred to the indoor game, with Mireille excelling and even being selected in Australian all schools teams.
But she said she was more suited to beach volleyball and the skills it needed to succeed.
"I can get around on the sand really well, and I can pick things up easily," Mireille said.
Beach volleyball also offered a pathway to the Olympics, where Australian teams have enjoyed plenty of success.
Along with the Olympics, Mireille said she also wanted to study and play beach volleyball at an American college.
Her success in the past year has come with two different playing partners, but she said things "clicked" when she was paired with Sydneysider Remy about six months ago.
"We really clicked, so we kept playing together," Mireille said.
Both had similar skills, she said, and that showed in the national junior rankings with Remy second only to Mireille.
In the women's open competition Mireille is ranked number 31, just ahead of Remy at 34.
However for the Thailand tournament Mireille has been paired with Queenslander Lara Maric.
To help with the cost of Mireille travelling to Thailand, the Illawarra Volleyball Association is holding a fundraising tournament at Woonona Beach on Saturday, April 20.
