Credit: volleyball.org.au
The biggest week on the Australian beach volleyball calendar returns to the Gold Coast today with the 10-day Volleyslam festival getting underway at Coolangatta on Friday.
Over the coming week and a half, more than 1500 players from across Australia and around the world will descend on Coolangatta Beach for four marquee events:
- 2024 Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships
- 2024 Australian Youth Beach Volleyball Championships
- 2024 Australian Beach Volleyball Schools Cup
- 2024 Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Futures
Players from all four tournaments came together on Friday at Coolangatta as the Mahindra Australian Championships got underway, with the event doubling as the fourth and final round of the 2024 Australian Beach Volleyball Tour.
This year’s national champions will be crowned on Sunday before the two premier junior beach volleyball competitions in the country take place, with the Youth Championships and Schools Cup providing a window into the players who are no doubt targeting Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games as a long term goal.
On Wednesday, the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour returns to Coolangatta for the third straight year, with the event attracting teams from Canada, Denmark, England, Germany, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, Thailand, USA and Vanuatu who will take on a host of Australian pairs.
“Volleyslam is the biggest week on the Australian beach volleyball calendar and 2024 is shaping as the best one yet,” said Andrew Dee, Volleyball Australia CEO. “Since late last year players have been giving their all in tournaments all around the country and Volleyslam is the perfect way to cap off their season.
“Over the next 10 days we will crown our national champions, watch the stars of tomorrow excel and see some of the best players in the world ply their trade against our most talented players.
“Once again Coolangatta will provide the perfect setting for this wonderful sporting festival, and on behalf of the entire beach volleyball community I would like to welcome our new partner Mahindra Australia and thank Tourism and Events Queensland and Experience Gold Coast for their ongoing support.”
Minister for Tourism and Sport, Michael Healy said:
“With players travelling from across the globe to Coolangatta, we’re thrilled that Volleyslam is back to deliver exciting volleyball matches over the next ten days.
“Volleyslam attracts more than 7,000 keen visitors to compete, spectate, plus stay and play on the Gold Coast, injecting a healthy $3.2million in direct and incremental spend to the region.
“This event reinforces Queensland’s standing as a world-class sporting destination while celebrating our state’s beautiful coast.”
Gold Coast Mayor, Tom Tate said:
We’re thrilled to welcome the Volleyslam festival back to the Gold Coast, reaffirming Coolangatta’s status as the ‘home of beach volleyball.
Volleyslam 2024 promises to showcase the incredible talent of our local athletes while providing a platform for international teams to compete in one of the most picturesque settings in the world. I encourage all Gold Coasters to come along and be part of the excitement.
Volleyslam 2024 is supported by Experience Gold Coast and the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland.
VOLLEYSLAM 2024
15-24 March | Coolangatta Beach
15-17 March – Mahindra Australia Beach Volleyball Championships
18-21 March – Australian Youth Beach Volleyball Championships
20-24 March – Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Futures
22-24 March – Australian Beach Volleyball Schools Cup
Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships open Day 1 of VolleySlam
VolleySlam made its presence known on day one of the Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships, with varied conditions and unexpected results setting the stage for an epic ten days at Coolangatta.
The Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships, doubling as the final stop on the 2023/24 Australian Beach Volleyball Tour for the 2023/24, opened with several qualification rounds that saw some of the top seeded pairs knocked out.
Looking to finish their domestic season on a high, top Australian seeds in the men’s qualification draw Patrick Tang and Jack Gregory (VIC) pushed hard to ensure they made it to the second day of competition.
“We were one of the higher-ranked teams coming into this and we’ve also been around for a while, so everyone knows you and wants to take you down,” said Tang.
“It’s always pretty tough when you have three games in a row like we did this morning. There’s no such thing as an easy game, despite what any scoreboard might try to tell you, but we played well and were happy to qualify for the main draw.”
Having placed fourth at the first stop of the Australian Beach Volleyball Tour in Geelong, Tang and Gregory are looking to go as far as they can on the Gold Coast, having won three out of four games on day one of competition, only going down to third seeds Ben Hood and D’Artagnan Potts in their first pool match.
“We made it to the bronze medal match back in Geelong in November, so we’d love to round out the season with another good result,” said Tang.
“It’s funny, you come into every game with a plan but so much can change in a split second or from play to play. I think our main focus is just going to be winning and being there for each other on and off the court.
“Best case scenario, we make a podium, but I think one of our main goals is also to improve as much as we can to prepare ourselves for what’s to come next weekend at Futures.
“We get to travel to a lot of nice places but Coolangatta is definitely up there as one of the best places to play beach volleyball, we’re glad to be back for the next ten days,” he finished.
The Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball has also attracted significant international attention, with many overseas players choosing to make the trip in preparation for Beach Pro Tour Futures.
Two such players are Delaney Peranich and May Gessner (USA) who announced their arrival with un unbeaten run through day one, upsetting second seeds Georgia Johnson (QLD) and Tara Phillips (SA) in their opening pool match after making it through qualifying.
The Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships continue through to Sunday 17 March and will be followed by the final round of the Australian Junior Beach Volleyball Tour, the Australian Beach Volleyball Schools Cup and the Coolangatta Beach Pro Tour Futures event over the following nine days.
Medal matches on both weekends will be streamed live via SBS on Demand, with gold medal matches from the Mahindra Australian Beach Volleyball Championships also streamed free-to-air on SBS Australia.
Volleyslam 2024 is supported by Experience Gold Coast and the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland.
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