Fuzhou, China to host first 2013 FIVB Beach Volleyball Open event

The 2013 beach volleyball season begins with the Fuzhou Open in China when the capital city of the Fujian province will host the men’s and women’s Open from April 23 to 28.

While this is the first time Fuzhou will host an Open event, the city organised the AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup in June 2012 where Australia bagged first place in the women’s tournament and Japan in the men’s.

Fuzhou no doubt made an indelible impression on Australian Natalie Cook as this is where she secured her fifth ticket to an Olympic Games. It is the seventh Chinese city to host an international level volleyball event after Beijing, Dalian, Lianyungang, Maoming, Sanya and Shanghai.

In addition to the Fuzhou Open, two other stops are scheduled in China in 2013: the Shanghai Grand Slam (April 30 to May 5) and the Beijing Grand Slam (October 2 to 6).

As part of a new development strategy focused on the new Olympic cycle, the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Council decided that FIVB Beach Volleyball Opens would no longer be part of the World Tour in 2013, putting in place an intermediate property that provides more opportunities for athletes worldwide to play.

With a total of eight FIVB Beach Volleyball Opens in the 2013 calendar comprising four double-gender and four women-only tournaments, there are numerous possibilities for athletes to compete in high quality, FIVB international competition. Over the course of the year more Open events could be added to the schedule, ensuring that all five Confederations will host an FIVB event in 2013.

The 2013 FIVB World Ranking system will include Beach Volleyball events at inter-continental, continental and national levels.

In another significant change, the format of all the tournaments – whether FIVB World Championships, FIVB World Tour Grand Slam or an FIVB Open – will be the same, featuring pool play followed by single elimination knockout rounds.