LONDON (AP) — Fear not, fans of the beach volleyball bikini.

Olympic play opened at Horse Guards Parade on Saturday morning with a sand temperature of 67 degrees — yes, they keep track of such things — and the women all went with the sport's traditional uniform.

Talk of cold weather had stoked fears that the women would go for shorts and T-shirts. But the Russians and Chinese were in the skimpy suits for the opening match, and the Germans and Czechs did the same when they played an hour later.

It was a raucous start for beach volleyball at the London Games. Dancers in bathing suits entertained the crowd during timeouts, and the raking crew did a Benny Hill thing on court changeovers. Rock music nearly drowned out the chimes of nearby Big Ben.

And the play was exciting, too: Russian players Anastasia Vasina and Anna Vozakova upset Beijing bronze medalists Zhang Xi and Xue Chen in three sets.