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Home / Timeout Beach Volleyball Academy hosts 24-hour beach challenge
Timeout Beach Volleyball Academy hosts 24-hour beach challenge
2015-09-30Staff Report 2 Windhoek The Timeout Beach Volleyball Academy, owned and operated by Namibian team coach James Verrinder, is opening a new chapter in the local beach volleyball scene. The Academy is to host the first-ever 24-hour beach volleyball challenge in Namibia on October 3rd on the courts of the DTS in Windhoek. Earnings from the event will be used to finance a new LED lighting system at the DTS courts and to purchase a variety of equipment, to benefit all players equally. “We’ve done a few upgrades, but we still need some money for the lighting to be completed. It would be nice for the kids to play under floodlights whenever they wish”, said Verrinder, who has more than 60 players under his wing at the Academy. Verrinder stressed that this event is not a competition. It is a beach volleyball marathon, with participants playing as much as they would like over the 24 hours. As the event is a fundraiser, participants are expected to raise a minimum amount to qualify. Players can choose to play anything from 2-a-side to 6-a-side. The event organisers will also occasionally run mini-competitions and fun volleyball-related activities to spice things up a bit. There are also plenty of prizes to be won. Children of 14 years and older can participate for the whole 24 hours, with their parents’ or guardians’ consent. There will be one designated slot between 8 and 10pm on Saturday night for children aged between 7-13 years. Corporate entities are encouraged to book a two-hour slot for their company to challenge another company, a team of participating athletes, or to organise games amongst their own colleagues. Times must be specified in advance, but they can enter as many employees as they wish. Speaking on how the idea came about, Verrinder explained that he had previously hosted a similar event in his home country, England. “Our club in Cambridge had a lot of members affected by cancer. These people suffered so much from cancer, so we wanted to go through a bit of suffering ourselves by playing volleyball for 30 hours while raising funds for them. It was a good cause to commit to,” he explained. Entry categories are: - Individual - whole 24 hours - Min N$1 000 - Individual - 1-6 hours - Min N$500 - Junior (7-13 years, 2 hour slot 8pm-10pm Saturday) Min N$300 - Corporate - (2 hour slot) N$2,000 2015-09-30Staff Report 2
