World Champs Beach Blog - 18 weeks to go

The Hague, Netherlands, February 20, 2015 - The World Champs Beach Blog is your weekly update of news ahead of the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships The Netherlands 2015.

Vanuatu earn trip to the Netherlands
Vanuatu will be represented at the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships this summer with a women’s team qualified for The Netherlands 2015. Read more on Vanuatu Beach Volleyball's Facebook page.

In the rankings released by the Asian Volleyball Confederation, the Vanuatu Women’s Team were third in Asia at the beginning of February. The top four teams from the continent qualify automatically for the World Championships.

Miller Pata and Linline Mansale are Vanuatu's women's team. Pata finished ninth at the World Championships in 2013.

Vanuatu Beach Volleyball wants to develop professional beach volleyball and is looking for additional financial support. “For us to be successful, we are still looking for a major global sponsor so that we are able to attend at least 15 tournaments in 10 countries in 2015”.

African Nations Qualifier
Seven countries from Africa will be represented at the Beach Volleyball World Championships. In the African Nations Qualifier, the men's teams of Tunisia, Egypt, South Africa and Ghana all claimed berths. In the women's competition, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa and Algeria booked their tickets to the World Championships.

Big year for Canadian teams
Canada has two women’s teams making their mark on the FIVB World Tour. Heather Bansley/Sarah Pavan and Jamie Lynn Broder/Kristina Valjas are currently tied 16th in the FIVB World Tour Ranking.

For 2015, both teams have set their sights on the World Championships in the Netherlands and qualification for the Pan American Games, which will take place in front of their supporters in Toronto.

This month, Bansley and Pavin are training in Hermosa Beach, California with their coach Scott Davenport. It’s the first time they have been able to prepare so thoroughly for the seasonm ahead, writes Heather Bansley in her blog.

“I am pretty pumped to have two and a half months together to develop further as a team before the first FIVB World Tour in Fuzhou, China.”

“The next two years are important and intense years. Last week was exciting for me because it signifies the start of my goals for the next two years, and what I’ve been working towards for the past five years.”


Sophie van Gestel, ambassador for The Hague
Sophie van Gestel has been appointed ambassador for sport in The Hague. The Dutch international beach volleyball player is one of six new ambassadors. Other sport ambassadors include marathon runner Khalid Choukoud and snowboarder Dimi de Jong.

The ambassadors will promote The Hague as a city of sports and act as role models for its citizens.

The Hague will be the main venue of the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships The Netherlands 2015. The city will host the opening match, pool phase matches and knockout round matches, including the semifinals and finals.

Van Gestel, who is in Florida preparing for the World Championships, is looking forward to her new role: “I’m really proud to be an ambassador for sport in my own city, especially this year with the World Championships coming to The Hague.”