Volleyball, a popular indoor team sport played six-a-side, takes on a different form in the sand, where it’s just you and one partner. Beach volleyball became an Olympic sport in 1996 and remains one of the most-watched disciplines at the Games. Just last year in Paris, the sandy court was set up right in front of the Eiffel Tower.
It’s clear that beach volleyball is a sports that never fails to draw large crowds, but how popular is it here in Luxembourg?
The sport is gaining more and more traction, whether as a leisure activity or on a competitive level. Increasingly, pairs are teaming up and even making it to tournaments abroad. Take Eline Delcourt and Rebekka Klerf, for instance: the won the national championship last year and took silver at the Games of the Small States of Europe in Andorra this year.
They hope to go even further – but unfortunately, they’re being held back by a lack of infrastructure. There currently is no indoor facility to train in over winter, meaning players must return to traditional indoor volleyball with six per team. Although far from ideal, a dedicated facility seems to be in the works in Bissen, ready in a few years’ time.
Another event that draws in large numbers of amateur beach volleyball players each year is the Luxembourg Beach Open, which has become a well-known event in the Grand Duchy. First launched 30 years ago, the LBO started as a friendly tournament played four-a-side, with each team requiring to include at least one woman. Now, it also features two-a-side matches, and the semi-finals and finals of the national championship now take place here on Sundays.
