Dominican IOC Member attends FIVB Snow Volleyball Festival
BRETAYE, Switzerland, January 21, 2020 - The snow volleyball
court was packed as members of the Olympic Movement joined
young people and families from Switzerland and around the
world at the FIVB’s Snow Volleyball Festival in the mountain
region of Villars-sur-Ollon earlier today.
Personalities included
FIVB President Dr Ary S. Graca F°, IOC Vice-President Dr
Uğur Erdener, IOC member Mr Luis Mejia Oviedo, Mrs Matlohang
Moilia-Ramoqopo, Mr Habu Gumel and Mr Bernard Rajzman all
enjoying Snow Volleyball Festival
Throughout the day, new and existing volleyball fans arrived
to try out all that Snow Volleyball Festival had to offer,
including a speed radar to measure serve speed, a spike
machine which participants used to perfect their smash, and
a Batak machine, used by racing drivers and professional
athletes to test hand-eye coordination, reflexes and
stamina. The action on court gained such a buzz that skiiers
stopped to check out the action!
Snow volleyball can be played by everyone no matter what
their level of experience, and demonstrates the fun, passion
and universality of the sport of volleyball. The principles
of snow volleyball remained the same as in indoor and beach:
a fast, dynamic and exciting non-contact sport, where
players act as one to achieve success.
Olympic volleyball legends Gilberto ‘Giba’ Amauri Godoy
Filho, Vladimir Grbic and Elizaveta Bracht-Tishchenko were
joined by beach volleyball Olympic champion Julius Brink and
Austrian snow volleyball star Florian Schnetzer to offer
snow volleyball masterclasses and share their experience.
From the moment the court opened, there was an air of
excitement for Snow Volleyball Festival, with people of all
ages keen to try snow volleyball for the first time. A
number of exhilarating snow volleyball exhibition matches
were played between the volleyball legends in attendance
which entertained the growing crowds.
“Snow Volleyball Festival has been a wonderful success,”
President Ary Graça said. “Our goal was to introduce young
people to this cool sport and it is clear that there is an
appetite for snow volleyball.
“We must now continue to develop the discipline and ensure
more and more people have the opportunity to play snow
volleyball!”
During the festival, IOC Vice-President Dr Uğur Erdener was
joined by a number of other IOC Members to experience the
cool new sport.
“Snow Volleyball Festival is a really fantastic event for
everybody here,” Dr Erdener said. “It is an interesting
initiative and an important promotional activity for
volleyball and the FIVB. It was particularly great to see
the legends from volleyball and beach volleyball taking part
in a winter discipline. It shows how snow volleyball has the
potential to attract traditionally summer sport nations to
winter events.
“IOC President Thomas Bach sends his best wishes to all at
the FIVB and everyone participating in Snow Volleyball
Festival.”