BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - DESPITE the Commonwealth Games and the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games being more than a year away, the local beach volleyball community is all smiles, as both the male and female teams have qualified to participate in both competitions.
The announcement was made by St. Claire Hodge, Executive Member of the St. Kitts-Nevis Amateur Volleyball Association (SKNAVA), who told SKNVibes there are a number of exciting events happening within the realm of the beach sport.
He highlighted the international events as the marquee features that they are looking forward too, noting that they would be using the current calendar year to prepare the teams.
“We are looking forward to the Senior Commonwealth Games which is taking place next year in Australia, as well as the Central America and Caribbean (CAC) Games taking place in Colombia next year also. That is one of our main focus especially for this year,” Hodge said.
That announce comes as they are not prepared to send a team to participate in the junior leg of the Commonwealth event slated for later this year.
The Federation’s beach teams gain qualification based on their current rankings, and because of that, the SKNAVA would be making a concerted effort to have the teams engaged throughout the year on the IVF circuit.
“All the events coming out of last year and this year would contribute points towards qualification for those two major events. As of today, as it stands, St. Kitts and Nevis has qualified male and female teams for those tournaments for next year.
“However, in order to stay in contention or stay qualified we must participate in some of the beach volleyball tour stops this year. So we are in the planning sessions where we are going to determine which of the NORCECA (North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation) beach stops we are going to participate in.”
According to Hodge, there are 14 stops on the tour ranging from Guatemala to Trinidad and Tobago in the south, and the executive members would decide which tournaments are best-suited and how many points can be gained from attending those events.
He disclosed that the Men are currently ranked 13th while the women are occupying the 21st spot within the NORCECA.
In that regard, he reminded that it is the 24 teams on the rankings table that would gain automatic qualification to the two tournaments.
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