Stavanger to host 2009 SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships
Lausanne, February 29, 2008 – FIVB President Rubén Acosta announced on Friday that the 2009 SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball Men's and Women's World Championships will be hosted in Stavanger, Norway.
"It was a long and fair battle between Moscow and Stavanger to win the bid, but in the end the experience gained by Norway in organising major Beach Volleyball events over the past few years prevailed," said Dr. Acosta. "It will be really tough for Stavanger to present an event better than the last edition in Gstaad, but next year I'm expecting the best World Championships ever."
Bjorn Maaseide, a world-class Beach Volleyball player, is the man behind the Stavanger project: "This is the biggest victory ever in Beach Volleyball for Norway," he said. "After 10 years of tournaments, a dream comes true. We beat Moscow thanks to the great support of our Institutions, the Minister of Culture, the Norwegian Olympic Committee and Stavanger's Mayor.
"We're delighted to be the first Northern Europe country to host an FIVB World Championship and NRK will give its best as host broadcaster, showcasing the Beach Volleyball stars and the beauty of the host city all over the world," Maaseide said.
The official signing ceremony and exchanging of contracts to confirm Stavanger as hosts of the tournament will be conducted in the near future.
The 2009 SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships are set to take place over 10 days on two courts from June 26 to July 5 as part of an innovative new tournament formula proposed by Stavanger, with total Prize Money of US$1 Million.
Stavanger has been a fixture on the SWATCH FIVB World Tour calendar for 10 years, hosting Opens and Grand Slams. The chosen city will hope to emulate and improve upon the huge success of the 2007 SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships powered by 1to1 energy in Gstaad, Switzerland.
The 2005 World Championships were held in Berlin, 2003 in Rio de Janeiro, 2001 in Klagenfurt, Austria, 1999 in Marseille, France and 1997 in Los Angeles. Before this, the World Championships were played yearly in Brazil from 1986.
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