AVP tour to host three-week tournament in Long Beach to replace 2020 season
The Association of Volleyball Professionals announced Wednesday it will host a three-week tournament in Long Beach to replace its 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The AVP Champions Cup Series will take place on successive weekends from July 18 to Aug. 2. No fans will be allowed. The prize pool will be $700,000.
“The AVP Champions Cup Series allows us to keep our footprint small, regulate safety protocols and still provide top-flight beach volleyball competition for fans to watch,” tour owner Donald Sun said.
A group of U.S. beach volleyball players has withdrawn from an Olympic qualifying event in Australia next week because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The AVP had previously modified its 2020 schedule amid the COVID-19 pandemic, including canceling events in Austin, Texas, and Seattle and postponing its New York City and Huntington Beach stops. AVP events were also supposed to be held in Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Chicago and Hawaii.
All matches in the Long Beach tournament will be streamed on Amazon Prime, the AVP said, with some matches also set to be broadcast by NBC Sports.
According to the Associated Press, the tour will use imported sand to build courts on a parking lot instead of on an actual beach.
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