31st FIVB World Congress: the future of the FIVB is planned

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1 World Volley F É D É R A T I O N I N T E R N A T I O N A L E DE VOLLEYBALL Farewell to Volleyball and to those who trusted us Mission Accomplished Our commitments pledged in Tokyo 006 have been completed in less than two years time and with your permission we have decided that it is time for my wife and for me to go home and allow, our actual Executive Committee members, a four years transfer period till 01. I am ready to hand over the command in this Congress so that a new era can start as soon as possible. The End of our Journey has come Finally, after 4 years, the time has come for someone else to take the relay. Here in Dubai I have presented my last report FIVB President Dr. Rubén Acosta H. to the General Assembly of the International Volleyball Federation. This has been the 1th time that I have submitted to your consideration the balance of our efforts made at the head of the FIVB activities, competitions and administration of our sports programs during the last two years. Forty two years ago, in 1966 in Prague, I discovered, and felt for the first time, the world and the ambience of an FIVB Congress and I could not believe it, I had been also for the first time, elected by the Congress as member of the Board of Administration. From there on, I never failed any one of the following 1 Congresses, including the one of my farewell to you here in Dubai!! Our heart felt thanks to those who trusted us I sincerely hope that our efforts have not been in vain and that during these days you have pondered the way in which Volleyball affairs were conducted since 1984 when, for the first time, you elected me as your President. I take with me some memories of my life in FIVB which are also among the most memorable of my life, all of them shared and enjoyed together with my wife who accompanied me all these years during the time of success and happiness as well as in times of anguish and distress. I treasure particularly those when one of us, tired or discouraged, hesitated and the other was always there providing moral support and new energy for a new fresh depart. Our Hopes were never in vain We found intensely long the nights of our sorrows but we were not promised to have only quiet and serene nights, instead we felt extremely short the days of successful happenings and very long those on which projects had vanished; we gave and received, we laughed and lamented, but never our hopes were in vain. Our work was very demanding and hard but it always gave results and it was worthwhile. We Built our own Destiny Today, at the end of the road, we can proudly tell you, that we go with no regrets and eagerly we can say, that the mission you entrusted us has been accomplished and the promise we made to our friend Paul Libaud, when he passed us the relay, has been delivered. In fact, Malú and I together we built our own destiny when, during our best years in FIVB, from among the many ways others were offering us, together we chose the way to go and now, when we look back today, we realize with joy that the way chosen was the right one and that it was always OUR WAY! Thank you all, for having so kindly been part of our fascinating journey of days and for your support which made possible for all of us to build and consolidate the world of Volleyball. Thanks, thanks forever. Dr. Rubén Acosta H., FIVB President Dubai, United Arab Emirates, June Official Bulletin No. 9 July 008 Edition in English News 1st FIVB World Congress: the future of the FIVB is planned Dr. Rubén Acosta (Mexico) made official his announced retirement from the presidency of the International Volleyball Federation at the end of the 1st FIVB World Congress which finished on Tuesday 17 June in Dubai. Mr. Wei Jizhong (China), First Vice- President, will take over the leadership of the organisation as President, unanimously elected until the next elections foreseen in 01, according to the recent decision of the Congress to follow again in four years time the Olympiad cycle. The delegates of the 00 National Federations gathered in Dubai gave a long, warm ovation to Dr. Acosta who, for personal reasons, had expressed his intention last month to cut short his mandate on the occasion of the Opening Ceremony of Château Les Tourelles, the new premises owned exclusively by the FIVB in Lausanne. I am leaving the presidency during this Congress so that a new era can unfold for the FIVB, declared the Mexican leader, who has presided over the world Volleyball organisation for nearly a quarter of a century. He succeeded the Frenchman, Mr. Paul Libaud, who founded Dr. Rubén Acosta is leaving the presidency of the FIVB and Mr. Wei Jizhong of China will take charge during the interim period until 01

2 FIVB Delegates attending the 1st FIVB World Congress in Dubai stand for the United Arab Emirates National Anthem the FIVB in 1947, on the occasion of the Los Angeles Olympic Games in After having announced, not without emotion, that he had presented his last report in Dubai, Dr. Acosta confided to the Congress Delegates, I take with me souvenirs of my life at the FIVB which are among the happiest of my life, souvenirs shared by my wife who has accompanied me all these years in successful times as well as in distressing and difficult times. We have had, he added, happy, joyful moments, times full of laughter and sometimes, unfortunately also troubles and tears. But never, absolutely never, have our hopes been dashed. Our work was demanding and hard, but it was worthwhile. In the course of these twenty-four years of the Acosta era, the FIVB and Volleyball have experienced an upward turn in all areas. The institution, as substantiated by the figures in Dr. Acosta s final report, enjoys solid, financial health, which guarantees its complete independence. It has an efficient administrative structure, spreading over all the continents, gathering a record number of 0 affiliated National Federations, Training and Development Centres all over the world and a programme of high quality sports competitions which are an integral part of the main dates on the international calendar. Moreover, Volleyball and Beach Volleyball feature henceforth among the main disciplines of the Olympic programme. We are leaving, my wife and I, conscious of having accomplished the mission en- trusted to us. We thank all of you for having so kindly taken part in our fascinating journey of 8740 days and for your support which has enabled us to build and consolidate the world of Volleyball, concluded Dr. Acosta amid a thunder of applause and an emotive ovation. The FIVB Executive Committee unanimously decided to invite Dr. Acosta to become FIVB Honorary Life President and to continue guide the organisation. The Congress approved the proposal by acclamation. The General Assembly also accepted to request Dr. Acosta to stay as President until the end of the Beijing Olympics. The final day of Dr. Acosta s presidency will be August 4, 008, when he will officially transfer the Presidency to the new Elected President Mr. Jizhong Wei. Dr. Acosta looked back fondly upon the progress of Volleyball during his 4 years as President of the FIVB and expressed his trust in the future of the sport under incoming President Wei at a press conference following the 1st FIVB World Congress in Dubai. We have accomplished the first two phases in the life of our organisation, said Dr. Acosta. The first phase was until 1984 under the leadership of Paul Libaud for 7 years and I would like to pay homage to him. The second phase has taken 4 years and in those years we have been trying to find our way and have achieved a series of improvements. The third phase starts with the election of Mr. Jizhong Wei. I m sure Mr. Wei will bring new fresh ideas to our sport. It is not just a matter of age, it is a matter of competence. He will bring new ways, a new image. I wish him good luck, said President Acosta, who also took the opportunity to pay a special tribute to the World Congress Guest of Honour and organisers. I want to express our sincere and heartfelt thanks to Guest of Honour H.H. Sheik Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum to accept and patronise this 1st FIVB World Congress, the gathering of the biggest sports conference in the world, said Dr. Acosta. It was the best World Congress ever organised. I give my sincere thanks to the people of Dubai and the United Arab Emirates Volleyball Association. Following an FIVB Board of Administration decision approved by Congress that elections be in line with the Olympic cycle, Wei will be President until elections in 01, beginning his term after the Beijing Olympic Games. During my term my task is to implement and accomplish all the projects already initiated by Dr. Acosta. We may have fresh ideas but these ideas started under the guidelines set up by the President, said Wei. The most important legacy is the intellectual legacy of Dr. Acosta that has come from 4 years of hard work accumulated. These are my feelings as I take the baton from the hand of the President. Dr. Acosta was elected President of the FIVB for the first time at the 19th FIVB World Congress in Long Beach, Calif., USA, in 1984, taking over from founding President Libaud. As Volleyball s ambassador, President Acosta tirelessly promoted FIVB No. 9 July 008

3 1st Congress in Dubai the sport worldwide and oversaw the spectacular development of Volleyball into the success story it is today, changing the face of the game to attract fans, sponsors and television through innovative management, creation of events and rule changes such as the Rally Point System. Part of Dr. Acosta s legacy is handing over to First Executive Vice-President Wei the largest sporting federation in the world in terms of Members, with the President responsible for increasing the number of affiliated National Federations in the FIVB from 154 to 0. The crowning achievement after 4 years of peerless leadership was in realising his and wife Malú Acosta s dream of creating a fitting home for Volleyball s future generations. The result of their endeavour was the creation of Château Les Tourelles, FIVB s stunning new headquarters on the banks of Lac Léman in Lausanne, Switzerland. In other developments at the 1st FIVB World Congress, the General Assembly unanimously approved an important change in Volleyball rules of having up to 14 players in each team, with a compulsory two libero players on the list. Dr. Acosta said the rule change, which is an increase from 1 players and will not allow both liberos on-court at the same time, will be mandatory for all competitions starting from January 1, 009. Confederations and National Federations will be free to implement the rule after the Olympic Games. The Congress also agreed to empower the FIVB Board to decide the immediate use of a lower-pressure ball in order to increase the length of rallies. The MVA00 to be the official game ball during the Beijing Olympic Games (no pressure changes). The General Assembly passed the proposal that an Olympic qualification event similar to that in Volleyball be added to the FIVB Beach Volleyball Olympic qualification process from 01 for all teams who have completed participation in eight World Tour tournaments without qualifying for the Olympic Games. The event will qualify three teams per gender and remain under exclusive FIVB television and marketing control. Congress approved the Board decision regarding International Transfer Certificates (ITCs) to help the development of local players, protect the identity of National Leagues and stop monopolies of financially strong Clubs. From the season, Clubs will be free to engage as many players as they want from other National Federations, but when they come to play the number of ITC players on court at any one time is preferably set at two. Notwithstanding, a National Federation may authorize one extra ITC player on court per team. It was reaffirmed to the General Assembly that National Leagues are allowed to have a playing season of seven months between October 15 and May 15 of the following year. The Congress agreed with and confirmed the continental allocation of places for the 010 FIVB World Championships after the end of the application window for the tournament on June 0, 008. There are 1 teams registered for the tournaments, 11 Men s teams for the event in Italy and 100 Women s teams in Japan. The vacancies are as follows: Women; Asia (4), Africa (), Europe (8), North and Central America (6), South America (). Added to these numbers are Russia as 006 FIVB World Champions and Japan as 010 organiser. Men; Asia (4), Africa (), Europe (8), North and Central America (5), South America (). Added to these numbers are Brazil as 006 World Champions and Italy as 010 host organiser. The election of Russia s Stanislav Shevchenko as Board of Administration Member from Europe was endorsed by the Congress. The General Assembly heard progress reports from the future organisers of the 008 Olympic Games, 009 Grand Champions Cup in Japan, 009 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Stavanger, Norway, 009 Women s Junior and Girls Youth World Championships in Mexico, 009 Boys Youth World Championships in Italy, 010 Women s World Championship in Japan, 010 Men s World Championship in Italy and 01 Olympic Games in London as well as the five Confederations reports for National Federation Presidents approved the Board decision to change the FIVB Congress election cycle for the Presidency and the FIVB Board of Administration from the year of the FIVB World Championships to the year of the Olympic Games and to extend by two years the mandate of all the current Board and Commissions Members in moving elections to the Olympic year s Congress in 01. FIVB President Acosta began the 1st FIVB World Congress with a special tribute to Guest of Honour H.H. Sheik Ham- FIVB President Dr. Rubén Acosta enters the Congress Hall with His Highness Sheik Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and United Arab Emirates Volleyball Association President Mohamed Abdul Karim Julfar (left) dan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, awarding the Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance with the Gold FIVB Grand Cross, the world Volleyball community s most prestigious award. H.H. Sheik Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum made the Opening Speech, praising the development of Volleyball s world governing body under Dr. Acosta s leadership. The morning session also included a special video documenting the memorable Opening Ceremony in early May of Château Les Tourelles. The FIVB also awarded the Silver FIVB Grand Cross to Rudolf Kunz for his role in promoting the outstanding SWATCH FIVB 007 Beach Volleyball World Championships in Gstaad, Switzerland. In this Issue FIVB Farewell to Volleyball 1st FIVB World Congress: The future of the FIVB is planned Volleyball Italy, Japan Men bag final two berths for Beijing Brazil, Russia, USA, China lead way in World League China stay perfect after second weekend in World Grand Prix Beach Volleyball SWATCH FIVB World Tour: Americans and Brazilians share golds in Stare Jablonki, Berlin, Paris, Stavanger events Development FIVB and Gerflor renew long-lasting partnership Quick Sets News from Planet Earth FIVB No. 9 July 008

4 Volleyball 008 world league Intercontinental Round Brazil, Russia, USA, China lead way Brazil, Russia, USA and China led their respective pools after the third weekend of Intercontinental Round action in the FIVB World League, the flagship annual event in Men s Volleyball involving the world s best players competing for more than USD 0 million Prize Money. On the third weekend, the Brazilians, chasing an eighth World League title and sixth in a row, beat Venezuela twice in Caracas in front of 1,000 fans both nights to improve to a 5-1 win-loss record. Russia, winners in 00, lost for the first time in this year s World League to eight-time World League winners Italy on Thursday, June 6, but came back to win on the Saturday in front of 7,900 fans in Rome. USA cruised past Finland both nights of the third weekend at home to improve to 5-1 and China downed Egypt to improve to 4-. The organizer (Brazil), the winner of each pool, plus one wild card chosen by the FIVB, go through to the Final Round in Rio de Janeiro from July -7, 008. In other news, the youngest-ever World League player, 14-yearold Wilfredo Leon of Cuba, played against Russia on the second weekend. The two matches Russia Russian Alexander Kosarev spikes against Cuba during World League played in Havana were watched by more 5,000 fans. In Pool D on the third weekend, Japan won a remarkable five-set match against 006 World Championship runners-up MEN S WOQ TOURNAMENTS Italy, Japan bag final two berths for Beijing Italy and Japan secured the final two places available in the Men s Olympic Volleyball competition at the World Olympic Qualification Tournament in Tokyo in early June. Athens 004 silver medallists Italy made sure of their ninth-straight Olympic berth by winning all seven matches in the round-robin tournament. Japan earned their eighth Olympic ticket by finishing as the best Asian team with a 6-1 win-loss record. have attended every Olympic Games from 1976 onwards. Their best performance was at Athens 004, losing to Brazil in the Final, and Atlanta 1996, where they won the silver medals. They also took the bronze at Sydney 000 and Los Angeles The Olympics is a very important tournament so we have to strengthen our team so that we can compete against teams such as Brazil, said Italian player Alessandro Fei, who claimed the Best Spiker title at the Tokyo event. Japan s Takahiro Yamamoto was named Best Server and Best Scorer with 10 points and Katsutoshi Tsumagari was Best Digger. The Japanese won the gold medal at Munich 197, claimed the silver at Mexico WOQT Italian delegation celebrate after victory over Argentina to qualify for Olympic Games 1968 and bronze at Tokyo 1964, when the first-ever Olympic Volleyball Tournaments were played. We have to increase the power of the younger players for the Beijing Olympics, said Japan Head Coach Tatsuya Ueta. Through these tough matches we have been really inspired by the spectators. The players selected for Beijing will make new history. Japanese Yu Koshikawa spikes over Korean Lee Sun-Kyu and Moon Sung-Min Both teams confirmed their tickets for Beijing after marathon five-set matches against Argentina. Italy, three-time world champion and eight-time FIVB World League winners, Volleyball Olympic Entry List Men 1 China Host country Brazil 1. World Cup Russia. World Cup 4 Bulgaria. World Cup 5 Egypt African Cont. QT Winner 6 Japan Asian Cont. QT Winner 7 Serbia European Cont. QT Winner 8 USA Norceca Cont. QT Winner 9 Venezuela South American QT Winner 10 Germany WOQT Germany Winner 11 Italy WOQT Japan Winner 1 Poland WOQT Portugal Winner Volleyball Olympic Entry List Women 1 China Host country Italy 1. World Cup Brazil. World Cup 4 USA. World Cup 5 Algeria African Cont. QT Winner 6 Kazakhstan Asian Cont. QT Winner 7 Russia European Cont. QT Winner 8 Cuba Norceca Cont. QT Winner 9 Venezuela South American QT Winner 10 Poland 1. WOQ Tournament 11 Serbia. WOQ Tournament 1 Japan. WOQ Tournament 4 FIVB No. 9 July 008

5 Poland at Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo Bay. After being swept in straight sets on Saturday, Japan won the second match in hours, 4 minutes. It was Japan s first win against Poland since May 000, and ended a run of 14 straight defeats at the hands of the Europeans. Intercontinental Round Pool A - Weekend 1 14-Jun BRA-SRB - 15-Jun BRA-SRB - 14-Jun VEN-FRA - 15-Jun VEN-FRA 0- Pool A - Weekend 0-Jun FRA-BRA - 1-Jun FRA-BRA 0-1-Jun VEN-SRB -1 -Jun VEN-SRB 0- Pool A - Weekend 7-Jun FRA-SRB -1 8-Jun FRA-SRB 0-8-Jun VEN-BRA 1-9-Jun VEN-BRA 1- Pool B - Weekend 1 1-Jun CUB-ITA - 14-Jun KOR-RUS - 14-Jun CUB-ITA 1-15-Jun KOR-RUS 1- Pool B - Weekend 0-Jun CUB-RUS 1-1-Jun KOR-ITA - 1-Jun CUB-RUS 0- -Jun KOR-ITA - Pool B -Weekend 6-Jun ITA-RUS -1 7-Jun CUB-KOR -1 8-Jun CUB-KOR -0 8-Jun ITA-RUS 1- Pool C - Weekend 1 1-Jun FIN-USA 1-14-Jun BUL-ESP Jun FIN-USA 0-15-Jun BUL-ESP -1 Pool C - Weekend 0-Jun USA-BUL -0 1-Jun ESP-FIN - 1-Jun USA-BUL - -Jun ESP-FIN -1 Pool C -Weekend 7-Jun ESP-BUL -1 7-Jun USA-FIN -1 8-Jun USA-FIN -1 9-Jun ESP-BUL - Pool D - Weekend 1 1-Jun EGY-POL - 14-Jun CHN-JPN - 14-Jun EGY-POL 1-15-Jun CHN-JPN - Pool D - Weekend 0-Jun EGY-JPN -1 1-Jun CHN-POL -1 1-Jun EGY-JPN -1 -Jun CHN-POL - Pool D -Weekend 8-Jun JPN-POL 0-8-Jun CHN-EGY -1 9-Jun JPN-POL - 9-Jun CHN-EGY -0 Pool A - Intercontinental Round - Standings after weekend Rk Country Matches Matches Points Points Won Lost Won Lost Ratio 1 BRA FRA SRB VEN Pool B 1 RUS ITA CUB KOR Pool C 1 USA BUL ESP FIN Pool D 1 CHN POL EGY JPN World League & World Grand Prix 008 WORLD GRAND PRIX Preliminary Round China stay perfect after second week FIVB World Grand Prix champions of 00 China were blazing a trail at the top of the overall standings in this year s competition with a 100 percent record after the first two weekends of competition. China won Group F in Hong Kong, while six-time champions Brazil won Group D in Vinh Phuc, Vietnam and twotime winners USA were triumphant in Wroclaw, Poland, in Group E. The Chinese and Italians came together at Hong Kong Coliseum in a clash of the remaining unbeaten sides and China prevailed in an epic five-setter. I would like to thank the team for their effort during difficult times today, they were able to perform to their standard, but still some opportunities were not seized well enough, said China Head Coach Chen Zhonghe. Japan had a bad time of it in Group F, losing in straight sets to Italy and China and only got one set off Cuba. Italy beat Cuba in five sets and had a 5-1 win-loss record overall to sit in fourth place in the overall standings. In Group E, things went from bad to worse for Poland, as they lost to Dominican Republic, Thailand and USA at Centennial Hall. They sat in second-to-last place with no wins. USA dropped just one set against Thailand in winning the group. In Group D, Brazil won all three matches against Kazakhstan, Turkey and Germany in straight sets to win the group and sat in third place overall with a 5-1 win-loss record. On the other hand, the Kazakhs Chinese captain Feng Kun sets ball for teammates against Italy during World Grand Prix couldn t win even one set and sat in last place with no victories. On the first weekend of the premier annual Women s competition featuring the world s best players, Turkey pulled of a surprise by winning Group A in Kobe, Japan, beating USA and Kazakhstan and losing to Japan, China won Group B on home soil in Ningbo by beating Germany, Thailand and Brazil and Italy won Group C at home in Alassio by downing Dominican Republic, Poland and Cuba. The Final Round will be played in Yokohama, Japan, through July 9-1 between Japan as host country and the best five ranked teams after the Preliminary Rounds. Results Week 1 Kobe, Japan - Pool A 0-Jun TUR-USA -1 0-Jun JPN-KAZ -0 1-Jun KAZ-USA 0-1-Jun JPN-TUR - -Jun KAZ-TUR 0- -Jun JPN-USA - Ningbo, China - Pool B 0-Jun BRA-THA -0 0-Jun CHN-GER -1 1-Jun CHN-THA -0 1-Jun GER-BRA 1- -Jun GER-THA -1 -Jun CHN-BRA - Alassio, Italy - Pool C 0-Jun CUB-POL -1 0-Jun ITA-DOM -1 1-Jun DOM-CUB 0-1-Jun ITA-POL -1 -Jun POL-DOM - -Jun ITA-CUB -0 Results Week Vinh Phuc, Vietnam - Pool D 7-Jun BRA-KAZ -0 7-Jun TUR-GER -1 8-Jun KAZ-GER 0-8-Jun BRA-TUR -0 9-Jun GER-BRA 0-9-Jun TUR-KAZ -0 Wroclaw, Poland - Pool E 7-Jun POL-DOM 1-7-Jun THA-USA 1-8-Jun POL-THA - 8-Jun USA-DOM -0 9-Jun POL-USA 0-9-Jun DOM-THA -1 Hong Kong - Pool F 7-Jun ITA-JPN -0 7-Jun CHN-CUB - 8-Jun CUB-ITA - 8-Jun CHN-JPN -0 9-Jun JPN-CUB 1-9-Jun CHN-ITA - Preliminary Round - General standings after Week Rk Country Pts Matches Points Won Lost Won Lost Ratio 1 CHN USA BRA ITA TUR CUB DOM GER JPN THA POL KAZ FIVB No. 9 July 008 5

6 Beach Volleyball men & women 008 SWATCH FIVB World Tour Americans and Brazilians share golds in Stare Jablonki, Berlin, Paris, Stavanger events American and Brazilian men s and women s pairs won all the golds available in the four double-gender SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour events in June. Brazil s Ana Paula Connelly and Shelda Bede claimed women s gold and compatriots Emanuel Rego and Ricardo Santos men s gold at the Mazury Open in Stare Jablonki, Poland. Emanuel and Ricardo followed up by winning gold at the next event, the Smart Grand Slam in Berlin, Germany. Americans Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers then took over to win golds at the Henkel Grand Slam in Paris, France and the ConocoPhillips Grand Slam in Stavanger, Norway. American women s pair Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh followed Ana Paula s and Shelda s triumph by winning three straight golds at the Smart Grand Slam, Henkel Grand Slam and ConocoPhillips Grand Slam. At the USD 50,000 Mazury Open, Ana Paula and Shelda, the most experienced team on the women s SWATCH FIVB World Tour, won the gold-medal match before a capacity crowd of more than 4,000 at the feated China s Jia Tian and Jie Wang 1-18, -0 to share the USD 4,500 firstplace prize in front of more than 5,000 fans at the German capital s main train station at Washingtonplatz. Emanuel and Ricardo, with their 5-7, 1-19, 15-1 win over Dalhausser and Rogers in the men s gold-medal match, matched May-Treanor and Walsh with the most SWATCH FIVB World Tour golds at. At the USD 600,000 Henkel Grand Slam, May-Treanor and Walsh won their third gold in four years by beating Turner and Wacholder in the gold-medal match 1-1, 1-1 on the Champs de Mars to share the USD 4,500 first-place prize. In the men s event, Dalhausser and Rogers completed an American double in Paris by beating the Netherlands Reinder Nummerdor and Richard Schuil 5-15, 5-17 for their first gold of the season after finishing third, third and second in their previous three events. At the USD 600,000 ConocoPhillips Grand Slam, Dalhausser and Rogers became the first American men to win back-to-back SWATCH FIVB World Tour American Phil Dalhausser serves as Todd Rogers watches the defense in Berlin Walsh made it three out of three Grand Slam golds in 008 with a 1-1, 1-14 win over Greece s Vassiliki Arvaniti and Vasso Karantasiou. June -7 - Women s Open Stare Jablonki - Poland - Podium Finish 1 Ana Paula - Shelda BRA Wacholder - Turner USA Maria Clara - Carol BRA June -8 - Men s Open Stare Jablonki - Poland - Podium Finish 1 Ricardo - Emanuel BRA Lario - Gavira ESP Schacht - Slack AUS June Women s Grand Slam Berlin - Germany - Podium Finish 1 Walsh - May-Treanor USA Tian Jia - Wang CHN Juliana - Larissa BRA June Men s Grand Slam Berlin - Germany - Podium Finish 1 Ricardo - Emanuel BRA Rogers - Dalhausser USA Herrera - Mesa ESP American winner Kerri Walsh digs in Stavanger Hotel Anders centre court, beating USA s Tyra Turner and Rachel Wacholder 1-19, 1-16 to share the USD 8,000 firstplace prize. Emanuel and Ricardo scored a 1-18 and 1-15 win in 9 minutes over Spain s Inocencio Lario and Adrian Gavira Collado for their first gold of the year. The Brazilians also won gold at the Mazury Open in 04, 06 and 07. At the USD 600,000 Smart Grand Slam, top seeds May-Treanor and Walsh de- events since Sinjin Smith and Randy Stocklos in 199 by beating Jonas Reckermann and Mischa Urbatzka of Germany 9-7, 1-15 for the gold and a share of the USD 4,500 first-place prize. May-Treanor and June Women s Grand Slam Paris - France - Podium Finish 1 Walsh - May-Treanor USA Wacholder - Turner USA Branagh - Youngs USA June -8 - Women s Grand Slam Stavanger - Norway - Podium Finish 1 Walsh - May-Treanor USA Karantasiou - Arvaniti GRE Ross - Boss USA June Men s Grand Slam Paris - France - Podium Finish 1 Rogers - Dalhausser USA Nummerdor - Schuil NED Klemperer - Koreng GER June Men s Grand Slam Stavanger - Norway - Podium Finish 1 Rogers - Dalhausser USA Reckermann - Urbatzka GER Brink - Dieckmann Ch. GER 6 FIVB No. 9 July 008

7 technical FIVB and Gerflor renew long-lasting partnership stays one step ahead of the competition. Technical & Development FIVB s choice of Gerflor as official flooring supplier for Volleyball competitions is recognition of the worldwide reputation of Gerflor indoor sports flooring. Taraflex is a brand well-known by Volleyball players throughout the world as a sports floor which puts the health and safety of athletes first. Taraflex already fulfils the new European standard for sports floors. Taraflex sports flooring has been part of the Olympic Games since Gerflor is the official flooring supplier for FIVB Volleyball competitions Gerflor is the world champion in PVC indoor sports flooring The FIVB is happy to announce the renewal of its contract with Gerflor as supplier of official approved sports floors for 009 to 01. Over the many years Gerflor has been in partnership with the FIVB, the company has been very concerned about the health of athletes and has worked on comfort and shock absorption to protect players health and also enhance their technical performance. Indeed, the new CXP double density foam backing combined with the new surface complex, D-Max, has made Gerflor s Taraflex Sport Performance Plus simply the highest performance vinyl sports flooring on the market. With more than 60 years of experience in the manufacture of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) flooring, Gerflor is the world champion in PVC indoor sports flooring. With more than 1,700 employees worldwide and significant investment in sports research and development, Gerflor always Official Bulletin of the FIVB FIVB founded in 1947 President: Dr. Rubén Acosta H. Château Les Tourelles Chemin Edouard-Sandoz -4 CH-1006 Lausanne Tel: Fax: Web Site: press@fivb.org Editor: Communication Department Printed in Switzerland No. 9 July 008 FIVB Technical Courses & Seminars Calendar - July-August 008 Country Type Dates From To Days Germany IRCC Beach Refereeing 9-June 6-July 8 Venezuela Coaches Level I 1-July 1-July 1 Barbados Setter Seminar 1-July 5-July 5 Tunisia Coaches Level I 5-July 16-July 1 Bahrain Coaches Level II 5-July 17-July 1 Venezuela Middle Player Seminar 0-July 4-July 5 Sudan Coaches Level II 1-August 1-August 1 Liechtenstein IRCC Beach Refereeing -August 10-August 8 Dominican Republic Coaches Level II -August 15-August 1 Dominican Republic Setter Seminar 16-August 0-August 5 India Outside Hitter Seminar 19-August -August 5 Barbados Outside Hitter Seminar 5-August 9-August 5 Ecuador Continental Refereeing 5-August 0-August 6 FIVB Volleyball Cooperation Programme Calendar - July-August 008 Country Type Dates From To Days Tanzania VCP Young Players 0-June 5-July 6 Bhutan VCP Young Players 1-July 6-July 6 Nicaragua VCP Teachers 1-July 6-July 6 Dominica VCP Young Players 7-July 1-July 6 Antilles, Dutch VCP Beach Get involved 7-July 1-July 6 Paraguay VCP Teachers 9-July 14-July 6 British Virgin Islands VCP Young Players 9-July 14-July 6 Lebanon VCP Teachers 9-July 14-July 6 Uganda VCP Refereeing 14-July 19-July 6 Burkina Faso VCP Refereeing 1-July 6-July 6 Vanuatu VCP Beach Get involved 1-July 6-July 6 Syria VCP Coaches 1-July 8-July 8 Malaysia VCP Beach 5-July 0-July 6 Togo VCP Beach 4-August 9-August 6 Congo VCP Young Players 4-August 9-August 6 Congo Dem. Rep. (Zaire) VCP Young Players 11-August 16-August 6 Botswana VCP Teachers 18-August -August 5 Kenya VCP Teachers 18-August -August 5 Gabon VCP Beach Get involved 19-August 4-August 5 Saipan (Mariana Islands) VCP Coaches 0-August 7-August 8 Côte d Ivoire VCP Young Players 0-August 5-August 6 FIVB No. 9 July 008 7

8 News & Global Calendar QuickSets Beach Volleyball in the sky? The 604-metre high Pulpit Rock in Norway A spectacular location for the opening and closing matches of the 009 SWATCH FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships is being talked about a court on top of the 604-metre high Prekestolen (Pulpit Rock) in Stavanger, Norway. Odd Langhelle, chief of the company that promotes the SWATCH FIVB World Tour events in both Stavanger and Kristiansand, stays the sky-high natural landmark that looms over Lysefjord would make for a stunning spectacle. Polish star Agata Mróz dies aged 6 Agata Mróz The other matches at the SWATCH FIVB event would be played at Vaagen Harbour. Polish Volleyball player Agata Mróz died on Wednesday, June 4. She was 6. Mróz, who was suffering from leukemia, was considered one of the best Polish Women players of her generation. FIVB President Dr. Rubén Acosta sent a letter of condolence to the Polish Volleyball Federation requesting the deepest sympathies of the FIVB and the Volleyball Family be passed on to the family of Mróz. The 191-cm middle blocker won the European Championship gold medal with 008 Global Calendar - Competitions and Events - Volleyball & Beach Volleyball DATES EVENT COUNTRY ORG. M/W June 8 / July 6 U-1 Continental Championship El Salvador NORCECA M June 0 / July 6 SWATCH FIVB World Tour Grand Slam Moscow, Russia FIVB M/W July -6 FIVB Challenger Brno, Czech Republic FIVB M July -6 European League Pool B Leg, Pool A Leg 4 Germany, Netherlands CEV M July 4 Drawing of Lots and GALA for the Indesit European Vienna, Austria CEV M/W Champions League 008/09 July 4-6 FIVB World Grand Prix - Week Thailand, Chinese Taipei, China FIVB W July 4-6 FIVB World League - Weekend 4 Beograd, Novi Sad, Toulouse, FIVB M Kazan, Trieste, Tampere, Madrid, Katowice, Komaki July 4-1 U-18 Continental Championship Guaynabo, Puerto Rico NORCECA W July Junior Women s ECH - rd Q. Round - Pool F Sète, France CEV W July 9-1 FIVB World Grand Prix: Finals Yokohama, Japan FIVB W July 10-1 FIVB Satellite Lausanne, Switzerland FIVB M July 10-1 Nestea European Championship Final Hamburg, Germany CEV M/W July 11-1 FIVB World League - Weekend 5 Beograd, Nis, Belo Horizonte, FIVB M Kazan, Jeonju, Bloomington, Varna, Cairo, Lodz July Junior Women s ECH - rd Q. Round - Pool E Vilvoorde, Belgium CEV W July Junior Men s ECH - rd Q. Round - Pool E, F Mogilev, Belarus and Zagreb, CEV M Croatia July 11-1 European League Pool A Leg 5, Pool B Leg 4 Portugal, Austria CEV M July 1-1 Caribbean Championship (CAZOVA) Barbados NORCECA M/W July 14-0 SWATCH FIVB World Tour Open Marseille, France FIVB M/W July 15-0 FIVB Challenger Chennai, India FIVB M/W July 17-0 FIVB Challenger Parnu, Estonia FIVB M July 17-5 Asian Men s Volleyball Club Championship Almaty, Kazakhstan AVC M July 18-0 FIVB World League - Weekend 6 Brasilia, Nis, Beograd, FIVB M Khanty-Mansiysk, Torino, Monza, Tampere, Varna, Poznan, Bydgoszcz, Osaka July 19-0 European League Final 4 Turkey CEV M July 0-8 U-0 Continental Championship Saltillo, Cuahuila, Mexico NORCECA W July 1-7 SWATCH FIVB World Tour Grand Slam Gstaad, Switzerland FIVB M/W July -5 FIVB Challenger Hacienda Bay Beach, Egypt FIVB W July -7 FIVB World League Finals Rio de Janeiro, Brazil FIVB M July 4-7 U- European Beach Volleyball Championships 008 Espinho, Portugal CEV M/W July 5-7 FIVB Satellite Gdansk, Poland FIVB W July 6 Beach Volleyball Olympic Drawing of Lots Gstaad, Switzerland FIVB M/W July 8 / Aug. SWATCH FIVB World Tour Grand Slam Klagenfurt, Austria FIVB M/W July 0 / Aug. FIVB Challenger Geroskipou - Pafos, Cyprus FIVB W July 0 / Aug. FIVB Challenger Vladivostok, Russia FIVB M/W August 1-4 South American Beach Volleyball Championships Esmeraldas, Ecuador CSV M/W August 1-9 U-19 Continental Championship Fort Lauderdale, USA NORCECA M August 1-9 BVA U- Beach Volleyball Championships Albania CEV M/W August 4-7 U-0 European Beach Volleyball Championships San Salvo, Italy CEV M/W August 6-10 FIVB Satellite Vaduz, Liechtenstein FIVB M/W August 8-10 South American Beach Volleyball Championships Galapagos, Ecuador CSV M/W August Olympic Games Beijing, China FIVB M/W August ECVA Tournament St. Kitts NORCECA M August South American Beach Volleyball Championships Lima, Peru CSV M/W August Beach Volleyball Central American Championships Guatemala NORCECA M/W August 15-5 BVA Junior Men Championships Albania CEV M August -0 1th African Nations Championship - Junior Tunisia CAVB M August -1 Asian Junior Men s Volleyball Championship Teheran, Iran AVC M August 5-1 SWATCH FIVB World Tour Open Kristiansand, Norway FIVB M/W August 7-1 BVA Junior Women Championship Bosnia-Herzegovina CEV W August 8-1 U-18 European Beach Volleyball Championships Loutraki, Greece CEV M/W Aug. 0 / Sep. 7 Junior Men U0 ECH Brno, Czech Rep. CEV M the Poland Women s National Team in 00 and 005. Mróz, born April 7, 198, in Tarnow, Poland, played for BKS Stal Bielsko-Biala Club for three years, where she won the National Championship in 00 and 004 and the Polish Cup in 004 and 006. From 006 Mróz played for Spanish Club Gruppo 00 Murcia, winning the Spanish Championship and Spanish Cup in 007. Mróz ended her Volleyball career in 007 because of ongoing bad health. She died on the morning of Wednesday, June 4, in a Wroclaw hospital. Mróz leaves a husband, Jacek Olszewski, who she married on June 10, 007, taking the name Mróz-Olszewski, and a daughter, Liliana, born on April 4, FIVB No. 9 July 008