Lausanne, Switzerland,
December 15, 2010 – The FIVB is pleased to announce the confirmation of the
FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour calendar for 2011 with a total of 14
men’s and 16 women’s events across 13 countries highlighted by the eighth
edition of the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Championships from June 14-26
in Italy and total prize money of $7.64 million, with the opening event being
the Brasilia Open in Brazil from April 18-24.
The 23rd edition of the
FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour, which also heralds the start of the
World Tour Olympic qualifying process for 16 vacancies per gender which runs
from January 1, 2011 until June 17, 2012, features six Grand Slams for the
third year in a row offering $600,000 prize money in Norway, Switzerland, Russia,
Poland, Austria and a new Grand Slam in Beijing, China. Quebec in Canada will
feature on the calendar for the first time with a double gender Open event
while Marseille, France and Seoul, Korea are the only casualties from 2010.
Events in the Middle East (Qatar, Doha) and Asia (Guangzhou, China) are still
being negotiated for inclusion in the calendar while the Kristiansand Open
event is still in the process of renewal.
2010 SWATCH FIVB World Tour
The $1million FIVB Beach
Volleyball Swatch World Championships, the most prestigious event on the FIVB
Beach Volleyball calendar, includes a number of firsts for the biennial
tournament including being played in a capital city, featuring night matches
including the final while two cities for pool play will be used before the
final rounds of the single elimination roster will be held in the historic
Parco del Foro Italico in Rome. Meanwhile, the Chinese capital Beijing returns
to the Swatch World Tour for the first time since the 2008 Beijing Olympic
Games with a new Grand Slam event set to take place from June 6-12 while Quebec
joins Montreal and Toronto as Canadian cities to host the World Tour and the
first since Montreal in 2007 with a double-gender Open from July 18-24.
The 2011 schedule - which
also includes an Olympic Games test event for women from August 9-14,
replicating the Olympic formula, in Horse Guard’s Parade - will feature a total
of 10 Opens of which six are double gender.
“The confirmation of the
FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour calendar for 2011 is a sure indication
of the FIVB’s dedication to spread Beach Volleyball to a wider audience,†FIVB
President Mr. Jizhong Wei said. “It is another busy season taking in four of
the FIVB’s continents and with Beijing and Quebec as new venues on the
calendar, it further illustrates the popularity of the sport around the world.
“The FIVB is working
tirelessly to grow the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour and the
increased media coverage and interest in recent years is further evidence of
the success we are having,†Mr. Wei added. “The FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch
World Tour represents the crème de la crème of Beach Volleyball and will
continue to provide entertainment, inspiration, a challenge, enjoyment for
fans, future players, athletes and officials alike.â€
Dr. Ary Graça, President of
the Beach Volleyball Commission, said he was pleased with the Tour’s growth and
welcomed back Beijing for the first time in three years.
“We are extremely pleased
to be able to return to the venue of the 2008 Olympic Games which has so many
strong memories after an amazing Olympic tournament two years ago,†President
of the FIVB Beach Volleyball Commission Dr. Ary Graça said. “The FIVB Beach
Volleyball Swatch World Tour is going from strength to strength every year and
once again, 2011 promises to be another prosperous one especially with the
Olympic qualifying process already underway thanks to the innovative
Continental Cup. This latter event will serve the purpose to boost also aspects
of Beach Volleyball including fans, organizers and players.â€
The next generation of
Beach Volleyball stars will also be busy in 2011 with the FIVB Beach Volleyball
Swatch Junior (U21) World Championships confirmed in Halifax, Canada from
August 31-September 4 while the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch Youth (U19) World
Championships are expected to be confirmed to be held in Umag, Croatia from
June 21-26.
Please find the full 2011
FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour calendar below
|
Women
|
|
Dates
|
Country
|
Event
|
Prize
Money
|
Bonus
Pool
|
|
April
18-23
|
Brasilia,
Brazil
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
April
26- May 1
|
Sanya,
China
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
May 3-8
|
Shanghai,
China
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
May 17
–22
|
Myslowice,
Poland
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
June 6-11
|
Beijing, China
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
June 14
– 26
|
Preliminary
phase: 2 cities,
Italy Final phase: Rome, Italy
|
World
Championships
|
$250’000
|
$250’000
|
|
June
27- July 2
|
Stavanger,
Norway
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July 4-9
|
Gstaad,
Switzerland
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July 11-16
|
Moscow,
Russia
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July
18-24 (TBD)
|
Québec,
Canada
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
July
25-30
|
Stare
Jablonki, Poland
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
August
1-6
|
Klagenfurt,
Austria
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
**
August 8-13
|
Kristiansand,
Norway
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
August
15-20
|
Aland,
Finland/Sweden
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
***
August 23-28
|
The
Hague, Netherlands
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
November
1-6
|
Phuket,
Thailand
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
|
$ 2’200’000
|
$ 1’810’000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Men
|
|
Dates
|
Country
|
Event
|
Prize
Money
|
Bonus
Pool
|
|
April 19-24
|
Brasilia, Brazil
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
May 2-7
|
Shanghai, China
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
May 17 –22
|
Prague, Czech Republic
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
June 7-12
|
Beijing, China
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
June 14 – July 26
|
Preliminary phase: 2 cities,
Italy Final phase: Rome, Italy
|
World
Championships
|
$250’000
|
$250’000
|
|
June 28- July 3
|
Stavanger,
Norway
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July 5-10
|
Gstaad, Switzerland
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July 12-17
|
Moscow, Russia
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
July 18-24 (TBD)
|
Québec, Canada
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
July 26-31
|
Stare Jablonki, Poland
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
August 2-7
|
Klagenfurt, Austria
|
Grand Slam
|
$160’000
|
$140’000
|
|
**August 9-14
|
Kristiansand, Norway
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
August 16-21
|
Aland, Finland/ Sweden
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
*** August 23-28
|
The Hague, Netherlands
|
Open
|
$110’000
|
$80’000
|
|
|
|
|
$ 1’980’000
|
$ 1’650’000
|
16 Women’s events / 14 Men’s events including six Grand Slams & one
World Championships
Total Prize Money: USD 4’180’000 Total Bonus Pool: USD 3’460’000
Legend
** To be confirmed
*** Competition starts the same day for men and women
