The 2,274 tonnes
of sand we used for the Visa FIVB Beach Volleyball International – which was
originally sourced from a Surrey quarry – has been donated to set up seven new
beach volleyball courts within 10 miles of Horse Guards Parade in central
London (the venue for the test event).
The new courts can be found at Crystal
Palace National Sports Centre, Score Sports Centre in Waltham Forest and
Westminster Academy, in addition to a further three courts at the
National
Volleyball Centre in Kettering, Lincolnshire.
As the sand arrives at Westminster Academy, I'm joined by (L-R) David
Kerrigan, Head of Strategic Commissioning for
Sport, Leisure and Wellbeing at City of Westminster, Councillor Steve Summers, LOCOG Volleyball manager Bob Clarke and Gabi Medricka from the London
Beach Volleyball Club.
This is a fabulous opportunity for Londoners to go along to a local facility and give one of the most hotly-anticipated and exciting sports of the Olympic Games a go for themselves.
And I for one am very optimistic about the future of the sport – especially given the recent GB success at the test event, where Lucy Boulton and Denise Johns made it to the bronze medal match and finished fourth, closely followed by the fellow Brits Shauna Mullin and Zara Dampney in fifth place. Things are definitely looking up for volleyball!
To find out more about getting involved in the sport, visit Volleyball England’s Go Spike website
