COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Feb. 4, 2010) – USA Volleyball has announced that it will host four International Development Qualifiers (IDQs), which are tournaments to identify elite beach athletes for entry into select international events and other USAV High Performance Beach Programs.

Teams that finish among the top three in IDQ events will get the opportunity to represent the United States in select NORCECA Beach Circuit and other international events.

“Last year’s two IDQ events were highly successful. With the rapid expansion of the NORCECA tour and the demand for high-level events that meet the needs of developing elite athletes, USAV feels that this is the perfect time to expand the IDQ schedule,”  said Ali Wood Lamberson, USA Volleyball’s Director of Beach Programs.

IDQ events are open to all beach athletes who are not ranked among the top 16 AVP teams (pending an AVP final decision). The AVP will grant dispensation to athletes in good standing individually ranked below a certain mark in order to compete in conflicting FIVB and NORCECA events.

Three IDQs will take place at Marina Green Park, 700 East Shoreline Drive in Long Beach, Calif., with the fourth event being held in Florida at a site to be determined.

The entry fee for each event is $70 per team for current USAV members and $80 per team for non-members. The Molten NORCECA ball will be used. The event format will be full match pool play with a single-elimination playoff.

IDQs are open to all beach athletes. Contracted AVP athletes must confirm eligibility based on rank with the AVP prior to the competition. AVP rank is at the final date of IDQ registration.

All participants must hold a valid U.S. passport and may not be currently registered as a member of another country’s volleyball federation.

To register, go to www.regonline.com/USAVBeach2010.

EVENT DETAILS

Event: International Development Qualifiers (IDQ)
Dates: March 6-7, March 27-28, and June 26-27
Location: Marina Green Park, 700 E Shoreline Drive, Long Beach, Calif. 
Date: Aug. 14-15
Location: Florida, site TBC
Cost: $70 per team USAV members, $80 per team non-members 
Ball: Molten BV5000 (NORCECA ball)
Level: Open to all beach athletes, (contracted AVP athletes must confirm eligibility based on rank with the AVP prior to competition.  AVP rank is at date of registration.)  Seeding: USAV/IDQ, NORCECA, AVP, FIVB and CBVA points will be considered
Format: Two days. Full match play (2 out of 3 to 21, 3rd to 15). Pool play with single elimination playoffs
Registration: Registration is online ONLY (www.regonline.com/usavbeach2010) and closes the Wednesday before each event at 11:59 p.m.

NORCECA BEACH CIRCUIT: Teams that earn a bid to a NORCECA event will represent the United States in the Main Draw of the event. USA Volleyball will provide a travel stipend of $200 per player for each event. Room, local transportation, and meals will be provided by the promoter. Players must organize and purchase their own airfare. Advertised prize money for NORCECA tour events is $10,000/event.(See NORCECA web sitewww.norceca.org for money breakdown and event regulations). NORCECA events take place Thursday-Sunday, athletes are required to arrive Wednesday evening, attend the award ceremony on Sunday and depart Monday morning.

2010 NORCECA BEACH CIRCUIT SCHEDULE CLICK HERE. Please note that the NORCECA schedule is subject to change.

FIVB EXHIBITIONS AND OTHER EVENTS: Teams that earn a bid to an FIVB exhibition or other international event will represent the United States in the selected FIVB event, and will be placed in the Main Draw or the Qualifier depending on the structure of the event. There will be no USAV funding for these events. Teams that make the event Main Draw typically have hotel and meals provided by the promoter along with guaranteed prize money. Players must organize and purchase their own airfare as well as hotel and meals during the qualifier. Events will be added as announced.

Volleyball players have long awaited a combined ranking system for all of the major east coast volleyball tours. East Coast Beach Volleyball, ECBVB, www.ecbvb.com is your one stop for event schedules, rankings, results & more for all the major tours on the east coast. This is not another tournament, but a community to promote all of the tournaments and more importantly the players.

ECBVB has integrated all of the major east coast tours: Digthebeach, EVP, AVP, EEVB, FBVT, SSOVA, CORONA, US OPEN, TOYOTA PRO into one highly interactive social facebookesqe website. All events are published on the event calendar, event results are published into the main ECBVB database which attaches individual results to player profiles created online. Players have the ability to create profiles, add pictures and videos, participate in the ECBVB forum and blogs, and much more.

All division, all ages, all tours. Register online at www.ecbvb.com and create your profile as your profile will be attached to your rankings and results in the tournaments you participate in. Feel free to contact us as we are open to all suggestions, lets do this and make this a reality.

Director: Rick Jennings
813-421-1117
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Rankings are computed as follows:

We use three criteria to compute a player's overall and against all players within their division.

• Individual scoring… For the 85% of the player's tournaments that are his/her highest finishes, this is simply the average difference of their finish compared to the level of competition they played in their tournaments. In other words how well does this player finish when playing in tournaments. This criteria counts for 65% of a player's ranking calculation.

• Strength of field… The number displayed here is the result of our proprietary ranking formula that determines a score for all the tournaments played by this individual. Again, simply put, a higher number means they played against stronger players and the closer two players' strength numbers are, the more similar the competitiveness of their tournaments. This criteria counts for 25% of a player's ranking calculation.

• Strength of finish… This table displays the finishes for the player. Finishes count 10% in the ranking computation and are weighted in accordance with the number of players competed against or, in other words, the size of the field.

Special note : We have made a conscious effort to rely more on scoring than on how big the tournaments were that a competitor played in. Selected national tournaments still play an important role in determining our rankings, but our system also lets any tournament count. We believe this will make for a more inclusive approach and will bring recognition to more players.

Lausanne, Switzerland, February 1, 2010 – Beach Volleyball fans around the world will have the opportunity to play at the SWATCH FIVB World Tour’s inspirational venues and learn from the stars following the signing of a partnership agreement between the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and Beach Volley Around the World (BVAW) on Wednesday.

The new initiative will see BVAW feature at SWATCH FIVB World Tour events in the form of a three-day amateur Beach Volleyball tournament using the same facilities as the SWATCH FIVB World Tour, allowing Beach Volleyball fans of all ages, sizes and expertise to play in an amateur tournament at the venues of the world famous SWATCH FIVB World Tour events.

In addition to a fun-filled tournament, BVAW will also offer free clinics - led by SWATCH FIVB World Tour professionals - concerts and tourism opportunities.

“This is an exciting new initiative which will create a strong link on the SWATCH FIVB World Tour and further open the Beach Volleyball door to the public, not only to play but also to experience the Tour alongside some of their heroes in the sport,” FIVB Executive Vice-President and Beach Volleyball Commission President Dr. Ary Graça said. “Not only will this be a great opportunity for Beach Volleyball aficionados to play in some of the most impressive Beach Volleyball venues around the world but to also have the chance to rub shoulders with some of their role models is a once in a life time opportunity.”

“BVAW is a revolutionary system of public participation for Beach Volleyball,” BVAW President Mr. Otello Vizzino said. “We believe our partnership with the FIVB will help develop Beach Volleyball around the world significantly and we are looking forward to giving people the chance to play in the same environment as the pros, putting smiles on the faces of Beach Volleyball fans of all ages and giving tourism opportunities to hosting cities.”

“This agreement represents a great opportunity for thousands of Beach Volleyball fans who had never had the chance to be part of an event of this magnitude,” BVAW Vice-President Mr. Jose Salema said.

The “Great Movement for a Great Sport” will feature at every stop of the 2010 SWATCH FIVB World Tour, starting with the opening event in Brazilia, Brazil, which runs from April 19-24.