A bumper 2024 summer of beach volleyball action gets underway at Mt Maunganui Main Beach on Tuesday with the Volleyball New Zealand Inter-Provincial Beach Championships.
A total of 105 teams – the biggest the competition has seen - across four grades in U-17 and U-19 age groups will take part in the three-day event.
Eleven of the 15 Volleyball New Zealand Regional Associations will be represented on the sand from Tuesday. Harbour Volleyball will contribute 37 of the teams while local hosts Volleyball Bay of Plenty (VBOP) have 25 pairs in the event.
The VBOP involvement in the event goes beyond the teams involved, with the Regional Association engaged by Volleyball New Zealand to take a leading role in the delivery of the event.
VBOP General Manager Paul Braddock will serve as the Tournament Director for the IPC with the Regional Association providing a range of additional roles.
Volleyball New Zealand Chief Executive Steven Upfold says the direct involvement of the Regional Association is an exciting development for the game.
“A lot of work has gone into a review of our event-delivery model recently and we’re excited to be working in closer collaboration with our Regional Associations moving forwards,” Upfold said.
“Paul and the team at Volleyball Bay of Plenty are well-placed to take a lead in these summer events in Mauao and we’re excited to get into the first one with the IPC this week.”
The first matches of the Inter-Provincial Championships begin on Tuesday. you can follow the results via the competition website home here.
The week of action on the sand then continues on Friday with the Tertiary Championships before the first event in the G.J. Gardner Homes NZ Beach Tour presented by Tip Top from Friday – Sunday.
