This Thursday marks the first day of play at the Aydin Open. More importantly, this will be the first of nine events incorporated from CEV’s schedule into the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. Starting this season, all CEV Satellite will become World Tour 1-star tournaments, thus becoming open to beach players from around the world. The move between the two governing bodies creates more playing opportunities for international players and is crucial towards Olympic qualification.
Here is what FIVB’s President Ary Graça had to say of the merger (CEV.lu):
“The FIVB and the CEV have come together to further integrate the international beach volleyball calendar and provide benefits to both athletes and event promoters. Our goal is to continue to grow the sport and the combination of our efforts will help us to achieve that goal. The FIVB continues to explore opportunities to enhance the sport and attract new audiences to beach volleyball. This landmark agreement will play a key role in that respect.”
CEV’s President Aleksandar Boricic likewise shared his excitement:
“With the incorporation of beach volleyball events organized in Europe in the World Tour structure, the FIVB and CEV are adding another milestone to their successful cooperation as they share the same vision and commitment to growing the sport at all levels. Only a couple of weeks ago, our organizations joined forces to showcase snow volleyball at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang to an audience including many of the world’s leading media and high-ranking members of the Olympic family. This time, we strengthen our collaboration even further in order to provide more opportunities for beach volleyball players to compete on the international stage and for national federations and promoters to help us develop the sport. This step reinforces our intention to work as a team and to contribute to a sustainable and long-term growth of beach volleyball in Europe, while inspiring the younger generations to take up this game.”
Other CEV events that were incorporated into the FIVB World Tour schedule are:
- Alanya, Turkey (May 31-June 3)
- Baden, Austria (June 14-17)
- Manavgat, Turkey (June 20-23)
- Anapa, Russia (July 5-8)
- Porec, Croatia (July 5-8)
- Samsun, Turkey (July 26-29)
- Ljubljana, Slovenia (August 3-5)
- Vaduz, Liechtenstein (August 8-12)
FIVB/CEV Merge To Incorporate European Beach Circuit To World Tour
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