Filled with competitive teams excited for volleyball action after a year’s delay due to Covid-19, the Dome in Swakopmund was an action-packed venue over the weekend when the Namibian Volleyball Federation (NVF) hosted its 2021 Bank Windhoek Doc Open Tournament.
The event saw 22 teams from both the male and female categories battle it out for bragging rights and the floating trophy. After the preliminary rounds, the women’s category defending champions Revivals safeguarded their title by beating Kudos 3-0.
However, Revivals’ route to the final was nearly spoiled when they met the Khomas Namibian Police team, who took everything to the wire during the semi-finals contest. Revivals narrowly won the game on a tie-break after a two-hour battle.
In the men’s category, Deutscher Turn und Sportverein (DTS) proved to be the strongest team at the tournament after they walked away with the highest accolade when they defeated Kudos by three sets to two, also in a tie-break. Windhoek-based Happydu and the Namibia Correctional Services (NCS) from Ondangwa came third and fourth, respectively.
“It was encouraging to see young players competing at this level; we will continue investing in the sport’s development and ensure that we create opportunities for the Namibian youth,” said NVF’s technical director, Joseph Amakali.
Amakali’s sentiments were echoed by Bank Windhoek’s Head of Corporate Social Investment, Sponsorship, and Events, Bronwyn Moody, who said that Bank Windhoek was proud to see so many young players expressing their appreciation and professionalism in the sport.
“As a responsible corporate citizen, we believe in youth and sports development initiatives – and we commend the NVF for showing us that this is achievable. The youth out there are eager to bring volleyball to greater heights in our country. We wish the NVF and the young volleyball players all the best as they prepare for more local and international competitions,” said Moody.
The NVF staged the 2021 Bank Windhoek Doc Open Tournament in honour of Berndt Hoffmann, a volleyball legend who passed away in a car accident in mid-March.
“After this successful event, we have now turned our attention to the league’s start in April, representing all our respective associations,” said NVF’s secretary general, Donald Doeseb, who added that all the league fixtures would unfortunately not have spectators due to Covid-19 regulations. The 2021 Bank Windhoek Doc Open Tournament took place on Saturday, 27, until Sunday, 28 March 2021.