SHOWS: LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM (AUGUST 9, 2012) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. (SOUNDBITE) (English) KERRI WALSH, U.S. BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD MEDAL WINNER, SAYING: "It's so much more special, you know, we wouldn't have obviously achieved number three if we hadn't gone through the steps it took to get one and two, but I think just having the full understanding of the gravity of what we accomplished and understanding everything that it took to get to that point, makes this one so much more special" 2. WALSH'S GOLD MEDAL 3. (SOUNDBITE) (English) KERRI WALSH, U.S. BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD MEDAL WINNER, SAYING: "This Olympics people were harping on about the bikinis again, you know and I feel like for some reason they just want to kind of bring it down a bit, but then people come out and watch and you know what, it's a legitimate sports, these athletes are passionate, they're strong, they're dynamic, they're graceful and it takes a second to change minds but absolutely I think that this London Games has raised the profile of beach volleyball" 4. U.S. FLAG ON SHIRT 5. (SOUNDBITE) (English) KERRI WALSH, U.S. BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD MEDAL WINNER, SAYING: "It really does, you know. I haven't allowed myself to sit and really, sit with that, that Misty and I, our partnership is over on the court because it's going to crush me, you know, I will cry for hours and hours and I'm not there yet, I want to celebrate right now, you know. But Misty and I have been together for 11 years, she has made my life so beautiful and it is the end of an era." 6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) KERRI WALSH, U.S. BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD MEDAL WINNER, SAYING; "You know, I want to extend my family so I would love to have another baby, I have two beautiful little boys and my husband and I are ready for number three, so I would love to take a year off and to focus on family and then get right back to work. I would love to win a gold medal in Rio in 2016 and I would love to have three or four kids by my side, helping me do it." STORY: U.S. beach volleyball star Kerri Walsh said on Thursday (August 9) her third gold medal was the most special of all, but that her next ambition is a third child. Walsh and partner Misty May-Treanor won their third successive Olympic gold medal in women's beach volleyball by beating compatriots Jennifer Kessy and April Ross in straight sets on Wednesday. May-Treanor and Walsh took gold in Athens in 2004 and again in Beijing in 2008. No other beach volleyball team, men or women, have retained an Olympic title, let alone won a third. "It's so much more special, you know, we wouldn't obviously have achieved number three if we hadn't gone through the steps it took to get one and two, but I think just having the full understanding of the gravity of what we accomplished, and understanding everything that it took to get to that point, makes this one so much more special," said Walsh. The Olympic venue in London was a fitting setting for the pair to achieve their goal. The 15,000-seat stadium, the biggest in beach volleyball history, is in the heart of London against the backdrop of the city skyline with the London Eye lighting up the night sky. Walsh said the staging of the beach volleyball contest, and the performance of the athletes will have raised the positive profile of the sport around the world. "This Olympics people were harping on about the bikinis again, you know, and I feel like for some reason they just want to bring it down a bit, but then people come out and watch , and you know what, it's a legitimate sports, these athletes are passionate, they're strong, they're dynamic, they're graceful, and it takes a second to change minds but absolutely I think this London Games has raised the profile of beach volleyball," Walsh told Reuters TV. May-Treanor will now retire, making this final achievement by the pair all the more poignant for Walsh as it marks the end of an era. "It really does, you know. I haven't allowed myself to sit and really, sit with that, that Misty and I, our partnership is over on the court because it's going to crush me, you know, I will cry for hours and hours, and I'm not there yet, I want to celebrate right now. But Misty and I have been together for 11 years, she has made my life so beautiful and it is the end of an era." It was a remarkable outcome for May-Treanor and Walsh, who spent more than two years away from the sport after their gold medal in Beijing. Walsh had two baby boys less than a year apart, and now envisages another break from the court before focusing on the next Olympic Games. "You know, I want to extend my family so I would love to have another baby, I have two beautiful little boys and my husband and I are ready for number three, so I would love to take a year off and focus on family and get right back to work. I would love to win a gold medal in Rio in 2016, and I would love to have three or four kids by my side, helping me do it," she said.