Women’s beach volleyball tournament to hit Karon Beach
PHUKET: The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour is to return to Karon Beach this year after an agreement to continue staging the annual event was recently signed by Pentangle Promotions Co Ltd and the Thailand Volleyball Association with the Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB).
Several changes to the competition format have been made by the FIVB; the qualifying round is restricted to a 24 team draw, while the double elimination system has been discontinued in the main draw and is replaced by a similar format to that used at the 2012 Olympic Games, namely pool play followed by single elimination in the latter stages of the tournament.
The 2013 tournament is expected to draw over 50 top women’s beach volleyball teams from around the globe to Karon beach, which as one of the few natural beach venues on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour and has always been popular with the teams. Up to six Thai teams will be eligible to enter the event.
Past winners of the tournament include the current Olympic Champions, Kerry Walsh and Misty May-Treanor and former World Champions Jennifer Kissy and April Ross.
The tournament is the largest annual beach sporting event in Southeast Asia.
It is part of the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Open series and will be held over six days from the October 29 to November 3.
To develop local interest in the sport, beach volleyball clinics and an inter-schools tournament will be held alongside the main event.
The event is proudly sponsored by the Phuket Gazette, PGTV and ‘Phuket Today’, the island’s only national television show.
For further information on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour in Thailand, please contact Pentangle Promotions Co., Ltd at 02-3113414/5 or website: www.pentanglepromotions.com
