Bhubaneswar: KIIT is set to become the first Indian university to host a FIVB Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour (Men & Women) event.
The tournament, to be held from March 4 to 8, will bring together 82 teams from 52 countries, comprising 306 accredited players and officials, including Olympic gold-medallists.
The venue of the five-day tournament, being staged in Odisha for the first time, is the Dutee Chand Athletic Stadium on the KIIT campus. It has been transformed into a beach volleyball arena of international standard.
KIIT and KISS Founder Dr Achyuta Samanta is personally overseeing arrangements at the venue to ensure seamless conduct of the event.
“Volleyball is both a rural sport and an Olympic discipline. For the past eight years, we have taken continuous steps for its development, encouraging grassroots participation alongside international exposure,” said Dr Samanta.
The championship, announced by FIVB president Fabio Azevedo during his visit to KIIT and KISS for the Volleyball Grand Prix last December, will kick off with a qualification event, followed by the main draw. The top teams from pool stage will advance to the round of 16, quarterfinals and semis
The tournament will end on March 8 with the bronze medal match, the grand finale and the award ceremony.
