Lausanne, Switzerland, November 30, 2016 - The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour will be in Fiji for the first time. From January 12 to 14, the double-gender FIVB Pacific Harbour 1-Star Open will be held. One of several new venues, the event will launch the busy 2017 FIVB Beach Volleyball calendar.
The five-star structure instituted starting with the 2017 FIVB World Tour is one of the many steps taken by the FIVB to modernize and streamline its competitions in a golden period for beach volleyball on the heels of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and on the road to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
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Latest VideosFacebookTwitterInstagramMedia GuidesFIVB President Dr. Ary S. Graça F° said, “The aim of the new structure is to provide a platform and formation of events that increase the number of competitions in a growing number of hosting countries and create a sustainable business model while providing additional commercial flexibility and opportunities.”
Pacific Harbour is on the Eastern coastline of the Republic of Fiji, 40 minutes east of Suva City, the capital of Fiji. Pacific Harbour was originally developed in the 1970s as a canal residential subdivision offering an alternative lifestyle to urban dwellers. With a mix of locals and expats, Pacific Harbour now serves mainly as a destination for tourists with a focus on adventure.
The area lives up to its reputation as a spot for thrill seekers, offering a wide variety of activities, from surfing and shark feeding to four-wheel-drive tours. There is also a championship golf course and abundant fishing. There’s also a good range of accommodation types, from budget offerings to some of Fiji’s finest hotels, and plenty of dining options.
Fiji is an island country in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about 2,000km or 1,300 miles northeast of New Zealand’s North Island. Its closest neighbors are Vanuatu to the west, New Caledonia to the southwest, Tonga to the east and the Samoas to the northeast.
Fiji is an archipelago of more than 330 islands, of which 110 are permanently inhabited, and more than 500 islets, amounting to a total land area of about 18,300 square kilometres (7,100 sq mi). The two major islands, Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, account for 87% of the population of almost 860,000. The capital, Suva on Viti Levu, serves as Fiji's principal cruise port. About three-quarters of Fijians live on Viti Levu's coasts.
The 2017 FIVB World Ranking system will include FIVB Beach Volleyball Major Series, 5-star, 4-star, 3-star, 2-star and 1-star events along with additional pre-approved events at the inter-continental, continental and national levels.
Implemented in 2013, the format of all the FIVB Beach Volleyball international tournaments are the same, featuring pool play followed by single elimination knockout rounds.
Country quota playoffs are also held, as needed, to determine the final teams for qualification tournaments.
The first men’s FIVB World Tour event was played February 17-22, 1987 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil while the first women’s FIVB World Tour event in Brazil was played in 1993 in Rio de Janeiro. The women’s FIVB World Tour held its first tournament in Spain in 1992.