FIVB Executive Committee upbeat in the World Championship year 

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, May 18, 2006 – After three full days of meetings, the annual session of the FIVB’s Executive Committee ended on an upbeat note, with all the delegates showing a desire to go the extra mile to develop and promote the sport in its World Championship year. 

Having reviewed numerous recommendations covering all aspects of the sport, from refereeing to coaching, from technical considerations to development, in addition to a detailed look at the sport’s numerous international competitions, the FIVB Executive Committee approved some important proposals to be put forward to the FIVB Board of Administration. 

The general conclusion of the meeting was that the sports of Volleyball and Beach Volleyball are in excellent shape. Whereas Beach Volleyball enjoyed a record-breaking season in 2005, with prize money topping 7.5 million US dollars for the first time, the FIVB’s premier men’s Volleyball competition, the World League, writes its own new chapter in Volleyball history in 2006 with a total of 16 teams competing for a record 20 million US dollars in prize money.  

In 2006, the international Volleyball season will conclude with the men’s and women’s World Championships, which will be held simultaneously across 10 cities in Japan. As part of the Japanese Volleyball Association’s ambitious plans for the tournament, training camps throughout the country have been offered to all participating teams, all of which have already confirmed their intention to arrive in Japan early to take advantage of this final training opportunity. 

Following the World Championships, attention will naturally focus on the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. The FIVB Executive Committee heard reports on the plans for Volleyball and Beach Volleyball in Beijing and was pleased to approve the excellent Olympic venues proposed for the sport: the 15,000-seat Capital Stadium and 8,000-seat Beijing Institute of Technology for Volleyball and the prestigious Chaoyang Park for Beach Volleyball, where a dedicated 15,000 seat Beach Volleyball stadium will be built and will remain as legacy infrastructure after the Games. 

Continuing the Olympic theme, the FIVB Executive Committee also approved one of the critical points required to ensure the success of the following Olympic Games in London in 2012. With the approval of a Great Britain Volleyball team that will consist of players from the individual Volleyball federations of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), the host nation can now look to make optimal use of the the recent £4 million pound UK government funding boost it received in order to prepare for London 2012. 

The delegates also welcomed the news that the Montserrat Volleyball Federation is to resume operations after a number of years of absence after the island was evacuated due to the devastation caused by eruptions from the Soufriere Hills volcano in the late 1990s. Equally welcomed was a recommendation to increase support to the FIVB’s Regional Development Centre in Bahrain, one of nine such centres worldwide. The Bahrain Development Centre will therefore receive additional equipment (nets, balls etc.), help with the organisation of competitions, training camps and management courses in order to develop the sport in the Middle East and Arabic-speaking regions. 

The proposals approved by the FIVB Executive Committee are submitted to the FIVB Board of Administration, which meets in Lausanne from 19-21 May. The FIVB’s supreme governing body, the World Congress, at which all 218 National Federations affiliated to the FIVB are represented, will take place in Tokyo from 23-25 October.