Lausanne, 9th March 2007 – Preparations are now in full swing to further extend the horizons of international Beach Volleyball with a SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Men’s Open stop at Bahrain’s Formula 1 circuit from 8th-12th May.

FIVB inspectors are currently in Bahrain to assess the viability of this undertaking and ensure that everything is on track for the inaugural event in Bahrain. Although a lot of work remains to be done to ensure a world-class Beach Volleyball event in such a unique setting, initial reports indicate that everything is on the right track. Confirmation of whether the event can go ahead at the Formula 1 track is expected by the end of the month.

As one of the most popular sports at the Olympic Games, Beach Volleyball has proven to be a crowd puller regardless of location and has migrated from its birthplaces on the beaches of Southern California to the heart of great cities such as Paris and Berlin. This year’s World Championships will even be held in the Swiss Alps, as the SWATCH FIVB World Championships come to Gstaad, which has been staging SWATCH FIVB events since 2000.

The SWATCH FIVB World Tour Men’s Open in Bahrain has the full backing of the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain and the FIVB has received a personal message of support from Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa, President of the General Organization for Youth and Sport, promising “to work diligently to make sure this outstanding world-wide porting event will have all the financial, public relations and media support necessary for a successful outcome.”

The National Volleyball Federation of Bahrain has also committed to fill the 3000-seat stadium with spectators for the final three days of the competition as the best way of promoting the sport in the Gulf region. This is in line with the FIVB’s vision of developing the sport in the Arabian Gulf, which includes plans for a SWATCH FIVB World Tour double-gender Open event in Qatar in 2008.

The 2007 SWATCH FIVB World Tour comprises a total of 37 events and 8.75 million US dollars in prize money. It also starts the Olympic Qualification Process for Beijing 2008, with the best eight results obtained by players up to 20th July 2008 counting towards the FIVB Olympic Ranking that will determine the teams who go to Beijing.