Baden to host 1-Star event, international competition returns to Vilnius

Baden, Austria. There is another Beach Volleyball tournament for players and fans to look forward to later this summer, after the FIVB and CEV confirmed that a double-gender 1-Star event will be taking place from August 20 to 23 at the iconic Strandbad venue in Baden, Austria (see picture below). The spa resort in the outskirts of Vienna was due to play host to one of three events scheduled for the second stage of the CEV Continental Cup, but the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis forced the postponement of that competition to the spring of 2021.

Baden is one of the most popular destinations for Beach Volleyball teams and the Strandbad has been home to international competition for far more than a decade. Beach Volleyball has set the tone for the return of competitive sport in Austria, with the HYPO NOE Beach Volleyball Champions Cup held in late June and early July providing the top players from this Beach Volleyball-mad country with the first opportunity to test their skills and shape after the long break imposed by the pandemic.

The event in Baden will be one of two double-gender tournaments planned for the summer of 2020 and will be taking place almost two and a half weeks after completion of the 1-Star World Tour stop in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The organisers in Baden will obviously take all necessary precautions and apply the relevant hygiene protocols in order to guarantee the safe and smooth running of the event for players, officials and fans alike.

Other calendar changes

Meanwhile, the Lithuanian Volleyball Federation have confirmed the cancellation of the 2-Star women’s-only event scheduled for late August in the city of Klaipeda. However, in an effort to provide much-needed opportunities for players to compete, they have confirmed their plans to organise a 1-Star double gender event in Vilnius instead. This will account for the return of international competition in the Lithuanian capital after the re-opening of a fully refurbished Beach Volleyball Centre in late June. The event in Vilnius will run from September 10 to 13, 2020.

The venue of the 1-Star event in Vilnius re-opened in late June after undergoing a full renovation

Additionally, in order to avoid a clash with EuroBeachVolley 2020 in Jurmala, Latvia, the CEV and the local organisers have agreed to postpone the 2-Star women’s only event due to take place in Larnaka, Cyprus, to September 25-27, 2020.

Sources:
CEV – European Volleyball
ÖVV – Volleyball Austria