Kerri Walsh Jennings, 42, is seeking a sixth Olympic appearance ©Getty Images

Three-time Olympic champion Kerri Walsh Jennings, 42, will seek to confirm a sixth Olympic appearance when she and partner Brooke Sweat contest the penultimate Tokyo 2020 ranking beach volleyball tournament that starts in Sochi tomorrow.

The Sochi tournament is the fifth of six International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Beach Volleyball World Tour four-star events offering Olympic ranking points.

It follows a three-tournament Cancun hub which the FIVB organised to ensure qualification could be completed.

The tournament in Russia, which will conclude on Sunday (May 30), will be followed by a final one at Ostrava in the Czech Republic, and the final Olympic rankings will be officially published on June 14 to determine the 15 highest-ranked teams per gender.

These teams will earn a quota place for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, respecting the maximum of two quota places per National Olympic Committee.

Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb face a battle at the Olympic qualifier that starts in Sochi tomorrow to reclaim the second US men's beach volleyball place at the Olympics ©Getty Images
Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb face a battle at the Olympic qualifier that starts in Sochi tomorrow to reclaim the second US men's beach volleyball place at the Olympics ©Getty Images

The last remaining quota places per gender and continent will be up for grabs from June 21 to 27 during the five Continental Cup Finals organised by continental bodies.

With the first of the two United States women's Tokyo 2020 places already secured by April Ross and Alix Klineman, Walsh Jennings and Sweat are facing a challenge for the second one from the young pairing of Sarah Sponcil and Kelly Claes, respectively 25 and 24.

To add to the complexity of the situation, a fourth US pairing, Kelley Kolinske and Emily Stockman, has an outside chance of reaching Tokyo.

Walsh Jennings and Sweat made the perfect start today, beating Alexandra Wheeler and Corinne Quiggle in a quota playoff to ensure they are in tomorrow's qualification round.

Meanwhile Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb need to finish fifth or better in Sochi to keep their chances of reclaiming the second US men’s place in Tokyo alive, with Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena, and Jake Gibb and Taylor Crabb the other contenders.

Following the tripleheader of the Cancun tournaments, the final three spots in the men's Olympic rankings are currently held by Chile’s Esteban and Marco Grimalt on 6,140 points, Italy’s Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi on 6,120 and Latvia’s Aleksandrs Samoilovs and Janis Smedins on 6,040.

In contention for those final few spots are Poland’s Piotr Kantor and Bartosz Losiak, who are on 5,940, Switzerland’s Adrian Heidrich and Mirco Gerson, on 5,800, Canada’s Sam Pedlow and Sam Schachter, on 5,700, and Germany’s Lars Fluggen and Nils Ehlers, also on 5,700.