A crack field of 24 teams – 12 from the women’s and men’s division – will go all-out for glory in the Beach Volleyball Republic On Tour Santa Fe Open slated to open this weekend.
The Beach Placid Resort in the scenic Bantayan Island in Cebu will play host to the country’s best sand court players for the third year in a row, as the previous leg’s champions Bea Tan and Dij Rodriguez, representing Negros, and Ranran Abdilla and Jessie Lopez, carrying the banner of Air Force, hope to figure prominently anew for the crown.
Rounding out the competition are teams from PetroGazz, Cebu, Visayas, National University, Cebu, Bacolod, University of San Carlos, Southwestern University and Russia.
Cebu Provincial Sports Commission commissioner Nimrod Quiñones is looking forward for the province’s successful hosting of the BVR on Tour Santa Fe Open.
“The CPSC continues to support BVR on Tour because volleyball is one of the most popular sports in Cebu. Beach volleyball is also a major crowd drawer and is in line with our thrust to push sports tourism,” said Quiñones.
“While the CPSC is working hard to develop our grassroots sports, these events featuring the elite athletes are part of the program as it gives our athletes an opportunity to see the best players up close and learn from them,” he added.
Last year, the Visayan-based squads ruled the Santa Fe leg, with UNO-R’s Alexa Polidario and Erjane Magdato topping the women’s side, while Cebu’s Jade Becaldo and Calvin Sarte emerging triumphant in the men’s section.
The tournament format calls for 12 teams divided into four brackets battling it out in a single round-robin affair. The top two teams per group will advance to the quarterfinals, where the winners will progress to the semifinals.
The Finals and the battle for third are one-match affairs.
The Sandroots program, BVR’s community development platform where athletes provide skills focused workshops for children in the community, will also be held.
A collection of athletes working together towards making the Philippines Asia’s hub for the sport, the BVR is championing beach volleyball lifestyle by growing a platform that intersects sports, travel and community development throughout the archipelago.
