• The Association of Volleyball Professionals, or AVP, is a beach volleyball tour which takes place throughout the United States. The summer tour starts in April and continues almost every weekend until the end of September and a winter tour starts in January and hosts tournaments Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays until the end of February.

    Effective August 13, 2010 AVP discontinued operations because of financial hardship. The investment group RJSM Partners, which was originally a minority investor in AVP,has had a controlling interest in it since April 2009. The tour’s marquee event, the Manhattan Open, would still take place, although under constrained circumstances.
    A follow-up organization, called the National Volleyball League, was launched by professional player and former AVP executive Albert Hannemann in time for the 2011 season.

    History

    The Association of Volleyball Professionals began on July 21, 1983, as a reaction by the top beach volleyball players to what they perceived as overly-greedy private tournament promoters. The frst logo design was provided by Ken Jencks and Steve Fisher of the Manhattan Beach Recreation Department.

    One of the earliest tour sponsors was Miller Lite beer and play involved a double-elimination format, with select tournaments sponsored byJose Cuervo tequila offering additional prize money and a unique format that narrowed the field to the top 8 teams, which then played in a round-robin to determine the top two teams for the championship match. Only men were allowed to compete on the tour until the women’s tour, the Women’s Professional Volleyball Association which had a separate sponsorship with Coors, ceased operations in the late 80′s and a women’s format was added to the AVP tour schedule.

    The winningest men’s teams in the history of the tour include Jim Menges/Greg Lee (70′s), Sinjin Smith/Randy Stoklos (80′s), Karch Kiraly/Kent Steffes (90′s), and Todd Rogers/Phil Dalhausser (00′s). After the merger of the AVP and the WPVA/BVA, the top women’s teams include Holly McPeak/Nancy Reno (80′s) and then McPeak with Elaine Youngs (90′s), Misty May/Kerri Walsh, and Elaine Youngs/Nicole Branaugh (00′s), along with Rachel Wacholder-Scott and Jenn Kessy-Boss/April Ross.

    After experiencing a boom in interest in the 80′s, the tour fell on hard financial times and filed for bankruptcy in the late 90′s, still owing prize money to players, the most vocal of whom was Steffes who refused to play in any more professional tournaments unless the tour could actually show him the cash prize money. When the AVP logo was picked up by Leonard Armato and the tour was reconstituted under Armato’s guidance, Steffes was one player who was noticeably absent. Still, the tour managed to attract the top men’s and women’s players and continued to grow.

    When Scott Ayakatubby and Brian Lewis won the season championship with Nissan as the tour’s title sponsor, they were given the use of bright-yellow Nissan pick-up trucks for a year. During the off-season, Ayakatubby was involved in a drunk-driving accident with his truck; wherein he bounced off a series of parked cars on either side of a residential street while trying to drive to his apartment late at night after heavy drinking. Nissan revoked its sponsorship for the following season. Ayakatubby entered an alcohol rehabilitation program and was never in contention for a title thereafter. Lewis quit playing on the tour and pursued commercial opportunities with Quiksilver, marketing nutritional supplements.

    After Nissan terminated its relationship with the AVP, the main tournament sponsorship was picked up by Crocs footwear, who agreed to continue to use the bright yellow with black trim “corporate colors” that the AVP had agreed to use under Nissan’s sponsorship. Due to market downturn, Crocs ended its sponsorship two seasons later. During the final year of play of the AVP, Nivea had signed as the title sponsor.

    The 2010 AVP NIVEA Tour

    In 2010 the AVP was scheduled to host 12 major events all over the United States but instead ceased operations in July, approximately half-way through the tour’s 2010 calendar, and filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection at the end of October. The tour, up to that point, had featured more than 150 of the world’s best volleyball athletes; among them Olympic Gold medalists Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Phil Dalhausser, and Todd Rogers.

    International travel insurance protected athletes when on tour. Click here for details of insurance plans and packages.

    Notable players

    Women

    • Misty May-Treanor – Two-time Olympic gold medalist
    • Kerri Walsh – Two-time Olympic gold medalist
    • Holly McPeak – Olympic Bronze Medalist (retired)
    • Elaine Youngs – Olympic Bronze Medalist
    • Rachel Wacholder-Scott
    • Jennifer Kessy
    • April Ross
    • Tyra Turner
    • Tatiana “Tati” Minello
    • Jenny Johnson Jordan
    • Annett Davis
    • Suzanne Stonebarger
    • Michelle More
    • Nicole Branagh – Olympian
    • Angie Akers

    Men

    • Karch Kiraly- 144 Open wins, 3-time Olympic gold medalist
    • Sinjin Smith- 92 AVP wins
    • Randy Stoklos- 96 AVP wins
    • Tim Hovland- 46 AVP wins
    • Mike Dodd- 62 AVP wins
    • Kent Steffes
    • Phil Dalhausser- 2008 Olympic gold medalist
    • Mike Lambert
    • Stein Metzger
    • Dax Holdren
    • Jeff Nygaard
    • Jake Gibb
    • Matt Fuerbringer
    • Casey Jennings
    • Todd Rogers- 2008 Olympic gold medalist
    • Dain Blanton
    • Eric Fonoimoana
    • Sean Scott
    • Adam Johnson
    • Kevin Wong

    The top players on the 2005 AVP tour were Jake Gibb / Stein Metzger on the men’s side and Kerri Walsh-Jennings / Misty May-Treanor on the women’s side.

    The top players on the 2006 AVP tour were Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers on the men’s side. Misty May-Treanor/Kerri Walsh-Jennings were the top players on the women’s side. The top rivals, respectively were Mike Lambert/Stein Metzger on the men’s side and Rachel Wacholder/Elaine Youngs on the women’s side.

     

  • Uncategorized 12.05.2013 Comments Off

    Just like any other sport, beach-volleyball has quite a number of people engaging in it. The sport is basically played by two teams on a sand court. Each of the players looks to send the ball over the net and have it land somewhere in an area that is demarcated as the opponent’s boundary. This sport is an Olympic sport and is regarded an indoor event. With a history that dates as far back as 1920, the sport has gained plenty of recognition and today it is one of the popular games played around the world.
    There are several benefits of this beach-volleyball. Any sport helps someone to be healthy and fit. Without playing any sport, one will very easily become unhealthy and they will be struggling to stay alive. With this sport, you can always be sure that your body is engaging in physical activity that it is therefore more likely to fight off any diseases or health attacks that might be looking to affect you. Naturally, people who engage in sporting activity are more likely to have longer and healthier lives than people who do not engage in any sporting activity. This is the case no matter what sport you are engaged in. At the end of the day, you want to engage in a sport that will revitalize you and keep your body in perfect shape and health.
    One of the reasons why beach-volleyball is a very advantageous sport is because it can actually act as a career for anyone. This sport can very easily become a career and from that you can be able to earn some real money. A number of people have actually gone ahead to practice this sport as their true number one career and they are reaping big. There are many parts of the world where this volleyball is greatly watched and there you can be able to have a worthwhile life.

  • Uncategorized 02.05.2013 Comments Off

    KarchKiraly

    KarchKiraly is regarded as the best volleyball professional ever. He has the most beach volleyball tournament wins with 148 in total and he is the only volleyball professional to win three gold medals in the 1984, 1988 and 1996 international volleyball competition. KarchKiraly is known as the inspiration for the USA Men’s Olympic Volleyball Teams by playing near perfect in the 1984 and 1988 games. He is well known for encouraging her teammates to play their best. Sporting a bright pink beach hat, Kiraly is easy recognizable during his days as the best volleyball professional there ever was.

    Logan Tom

    Logan Tom is an extraordinary volleyball professional and one of the most flexible volleyball players in the game. Her extreme talent makes her one of the most famous sports women in the world. At over 6 foot tall, Logan is able to tackle the game with power, speed and confidence. She has received a MVP award for the NCAA Final Tour in 2001. At only 19, Logan represented her country in the Sydney 2000 Olympics. She was the youngest player on the team and she even started. Most recently, Tom has begun working with the volleyball website Volleyball 1on1 where she shows off her coaching ability online for others to learn.

    Gilberto Godoy Filho

    Giba is regarded as the most recognized professional volleyball player in the world. He has an extremely strong presence on the court and his charm alongside his clear talent makes him one of the most entertaining sports people there is. Although he is relatively short for a volleyball player, Giba has won 1 Italian cup and was awarded MVP in 2006. Later on he moved back to Brazil and won the championship. His best achievements are with Brazil’s national volleyball team. He earned 1 gold medal, 3 World Championships and 8 South American Championships.

  • Uncategorized 04.04.2013 Comments Off

    Beach-volleyball which is also known as sand volleyball is a sport that is played by two teams on a sand court that is split into two by a net between the two teams. The game aims to have each of the players looking to send the ball over the net and having it land in the court of the opponent. There are markings that indicate the extent to which each team’s court goes. The objective of the other team is to avoid the ball from hitting the ground in their half of the court.
    Each team is allowed to have no more than three touches on the ball while it is on their side. Play begins with a service and this sends the ball over to the opponents who then make their three touches and send the ball over to the opponent’s court. When the ball is served, play continues until such a time when the ball has finally hit the ground, has gone out of play or if it is not returned well by the opponents.
    With beach-volleyball, the team that scores is the one that goes ahead to serve after they have scored. Whenever a rally is won by a team, there is a switch in who is serving and this happens on both ends of the teams. The game is known to have originated from somewhere in Southern California in United States. Today, it is a widely played game and is actually an Olympic team sport.
    Unlike the ordinary indoor volleyball, beach-volleyball requires a playing surface of sand and not that of a real court. Also, unlike the ordinary indoor volleyball, this type of volleyball has two players instead of six. Coaching during the course of the game is not allowed. Every after seven points, the teams make a switch and change sides unlike in the case of indoor volleyball.

  • Uncategorized 09.03.2013 Comments Off

    Games provide a healthy way of living and allow you to enjoy life in a better manner. The best thing about games is that these are free to play and gives you a better health. It controls the blood circulation and increases your life expectancy. Volleyball is also a type of indoor as well as outdoor game. It consists of two groups or teams that play against each other. The net serves as a separation media and the game is played with the help of points. The points of one team enable a team to win against the other team. This article will discuss the advantages of the beach-volleyball which is a very nice version of this game.
    Usually this game is preferred by friends visiting a beach. The friends love to play this game as it is played without any rules and regulations. There are many advantages of playing this game. The first advantage is that it increases your strength and diabetics are not recommended to play this game. The game can result in some sort of injury that can affect their health. The second advantage is that it helps to increase the physical strength. Anyone can play this game to increase the physical as well as mental strength. The beach-volleyball is a perfect game that suits the interest of every person. This game allows you to enjoy on the beach. People love to enjoy this game mainly due to the easy rules and perfect location. Professional players love to play this sport according to the rules and regulations.
    Hence it can be concluded that beach-volleyball is the best way to pass your time during the beach vacations. You can play it many of your friends and at the end of the day, everyone will be happy to play this beautiful game. It increase the stamina and give you good health.

  • Uncategorized 17.02.2013 Comments Off

    Volleyball is one of those exciting games played around the world which are largely known the specific element of fun and entertainment in them. This game is not something as aggressive as most of the other games like soccer or athletics. It is generally known as a game of nobles and is a perfect morning exercise for most of the youngsters. There are different forms of volleyball played in different parts of the world. Of these, beach-volleyball is the most exciting and energetic one. This form of volleyball is played in all those parts of the world where beach areas are available for public recreation.
    Taking a look into how this particular game is being played, it is no different than the usually volleyball and is played almost on similar rules and regulations. However, it is somewhat a free type of volleyball ad involves less strict rules and more free options for the players. Moreover, it is not played on plain ground but on beach sands which adds a specific color to this game. The court size is comparatively smaller in this format of the game and the texture of the volleyball is also quite light and porous in this format. But despite of all these difference from the conventional volleyball game, it is an understood fact that the beach volleyball is equally loved by people. There are many national and international evens of this game. Especially those tourists’ destinations of the world where beach areas are available, this form of sports is quite much known. If you ever find a chance to be at some beach area, do not mss a chance to play this game. Not only that it will keep you fresh and cool all the time but will also add a significance experience of delight and energy in you.

  • Uncategorized 17.01.2013 Comments Off

    Sport is not just a matter of jumping around and enjoying wildly. As a matter of fact, different sports and games have a taste of their own and ones playing those games have got a spirit of the game injected in their veins. There are different types of sports and games going around the world. Some of the games are indoor games like those of squash and snooker. These games require a different fitness level. And since these games do not involve a physical interaction of the players with each other, the fitness level and the aggression in these games is different than what we see in a number of outdoor games like those of soccer or volleyball. As a matter of fact, the volleyball professionals are the fiercest professionals around the sports world. With their gigantic stature and with their long strides, they inject a special flavor to the game. Those looking at these games would have their hearts pumping up and down with the pace of the game. Volleyball professionals need to be very much fit, agile and perfectly shaped in order to be successful in the game.
    The volleyball professionals are idealized by millions around the world. There are many professionals who have been taken into short films, commercial ads and other such activities due to their hot looks and manly appearance. Volleyball professionals are also paid very highly for their games and victories. These professionals are actually sponsored by huge multinational companies working in different parts of the world and at different levels and these companies spend a considerable part of their earning on these professionals. Therefore, it would be a very good idea to see these professionals working right according to their game and extracting fun and adventure out of their game play and classic display.

  • Uncategorized 08.01.2013 Comments Off

    Games are part of life and outdoor games are more common as compared to that of the indoor games. The beach-volleyball is an interactive sport and is considered to be the best game during the winters as well as the summers. It consists of two teams and it based upon the points method. It has a court that is usually near the beach and sandy ground is considered to be the best for playing this sport. There are many advantages as well as limitations of this sport. This article will critically analyze some of the aspects that are related to this game. Following are some of the points that are related to this sport. Overall the beach-volleyball is a great sport that increases your strength.
    First advantage is that you can play this sport with your family. Beach is the best location to play this sport. This has been a great increase in trend of this sport. There is no age limitation in this game as anyone can play this game. This game has one limitation that it can only be played on a beach side. Anyone who has facility of going on a sea shore can easily play this game. The beach-volleyball has many other advantages. Diabetics are encouraged to play this game as this game burn the calories and results in a balanced sugar concentration in your blood. Another advantage is that it regulates your blood pressure. It can also be concluded that this game has a better playing environment as compared to that of other games. Other games demand some sort of specific environment but the beach-volleyball is very different. It is played in open environment and offers a small amount of injuries because it is played on sand. Hence it can be concluded that volley ball is a great sport to enjoy.

  • Uncategorized 17.12.2012 Comments Off

    Every game has particular rules and regulations that enable the game or sport to run in an optimum fashion. As there are many types of games in the world so there are set of rules and regulations for every game. The volleyball professionals are those dedicated and enthusiastic people who love to play the volleyball all the time. No sportsman can excel without a particular game plan and there are specific set of rules for every game. The players should be professionally trained and qualified. This article will discuss some of the qualities of good volleyball players.
    Smart volleyball professionals should be dedicated to his game. He should be very much interested to improve the quality of his game. Similarly there should be no political thinking and he should not be biased to some of the negative activities in the game. The game player should be very much interested to improve his game plan. He should focus on learning again and again. If he is reluctant towards this matter then there will start a decline and that will proceed till the time until he is not willing to work. He should be quite vigilant in maintaining physical and mental health. If the professional is suffering from any condition that is worse than he will not be able to continue his game in an optimum manner. The Association of Volleyball professionals also guide the young volleyball professionals in maintaining their life style and game at the same time.
    Hence it can be concluded that the volleyball professionals should be dynamic as well as enthusiastic in maintenance of their habits. Moreover the negative issues should be eliminated from the team as it harms the overall rank of your team. Positive attitude is the key to success and the sportsman spirit should be remembered before and end of every game.

June 2013
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