Lausanne, August 27, 2008 – Following the outstanding success of the Olympic Games Beach Volleyball Tournaments in Beijing, the FIVB is pleased to announce that the SWATCH FIVB World Tour Sanya Open in China will take place in November.

The US$350,000 men’s and women’s event has been re-confirmed for November 11-15, 2008, in the Hainan province city of Sanya, well-known for its tropical climate and as a popular tourist destination. Teams interested in entering this event have until Monday, October 13, to make a decision.

Beach Volleyball is enjoying a surge in popularity in China after the recent emergence of world-class Chinese players such as Tian Jia and Wang Jie , Zhang Xi and Xue Chen. Tian and Wang claimed silver in Beijing behind Kerri Walsh and Misty-May Treanor, while Zhang and Xue won bronze, China’s first-ever Olympic Beach Volleyball medals.

The dazzling show put on at the 12,200-seater Chaoyang Park Beach Volleyball Ground in Beijng during the Summer Games, when huge crowds enjoyed the spectacular mix of sport and entertainment, has further added to the allure of the game for the Chinese. This great success has attracted several organisations interested in preserving the legacy of the Olympic Games in Beijing through the staging of major events.

The burgeoning popularity of Beach Volleyball in China is sure to continue as the SWATCH FIVB World Tour rolls around to the beautiful setting of Sanya, the city which is set to draw the curtain on another breathtaking SWATCH FIVB World Tour year.

The Sanya Open will follow the US$175,000 SWATCH FIVB Phuket Thailand Open for men, which runs through November 4-9 and the US$175,000 SWATCH FIVB Bahrain Open for women, which is scheduled for October 27 to November 1.