April's Beach Volleyball Log

UNIVERSAL SPORTS TO BROADCAST FIVB BEACH VOLLEYBALL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, TV Coverage STARTS Friday, June 26

Melisa Mowry                                            FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

240.396.1906

Melisa.Mowry@nbcuni.com 

UNIVERSAL SPORTS TO BROADCAST FIVB BEACH

VOLLEYBALL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 

American Duo Dalhausser and Rogers to Defend Gold Medal 

Live Online Coverage Begins Today, TV coverage starts Friday 

LOS ANGELES – June 24, 2009 – American duo and 2008 Beijing Olympic gold medalists Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers headline a field of more than 190 of the top-ranked beach volleyball players as Universal Sports, in partnership with the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), presents 11 days of coverage of the 2009 Beach Volleyball World Championships from Stavanger, Norway.  

Universal Sports’ coverage of the opening match begins at 12:30 p.m. ET today with free, live online streaming video available at UniversalSports.com. Television coverage begins Friday at 9 p.m. ET with a two-hour recap show. 

The broadcast team consists of Olympic gold medalist Paul Sunderland and Jim Watson, both play-by-play commentators for NBC Olympics, with Olympic gold medalist Dain Blanton providing analysis. Three-time Olympian and 2004 bronze medalist Holly McPeak will join the team for the women’s medal round.  
 
COVERAGE ON UNIVERSALSPORTS.COM:  UniversalSports.com will provide live coverage of the featured matches each day from Stavanger. A detailed webcast schedule is available, as well as highlights, full-length videos, photos, breaking news and more, at UniversalSports.com/beachvolleyball. 

Date            Event      Time (all times ET)                                                                             

June 25 Opening Match    12:30 – 2:15 p.m.

June 26 Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

June 27 Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

June 28 Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

June 29 Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

June 30 Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

July 1  Pool Play     5 a.m. – 2 p.m.

July 2  Round of 32     5 a.m. – 3 p.m.

July 3  Round of 16 and Quarterfinals  5 a.m. – 3 p.m.

July 4  Women’s Semifinals and Medal Matches 5 a.m. – 3 p.m.

July 5  Men’s Semifinals and Medal Matches 5 a.m. – 12 p.m. 

COVERAGE ON UNIVERSAL SPORTS:  Universal Sports, available in 45 million homes, will present a two-hour primetime show with highlights of the day’s top matches at 9 p.m. ET, and an encore presentation at 1 a.m. ET, each day of the competition starting Friday, June 26.   

ABOUT THE EVENT: This year, 96 teams from 32 countries will be competing for the gold in Stavanger, Norway. The women’s gold medal will be up for grabs after 2008 Beijing Games gold medalists, Kerry Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, decided not to compete in this year’s world championships.  Americans Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers, 2008 Olympic gold medalists, will be the top contenders for the men’s medal.  Beijing silver medalists from Brazil, Marcio Araujo and Fabio Luiz, will enter the competition as the No. 10 seed.  

TOP SEEDED WOMEN ATHLETES:

Seed  Team      Country

1  Jennifer Kessy / April Ross   USA

2  Maria Antonelli / Talita Antunes  Brazil

(Maria Antonelli in Berlin, photo courtesy of FIVB)

3  Nicole Branagh / Elaine Youngs  Brazil

(Nicole and Elaine in AUS, photo courtesy of FIVB)

4  Ana Paula / Shelda Bede   Brazil

(Shelde Bede passing in AUS, photo courtesy of FIVB)

5  Larissa Franca / Juliana Felisberta Brazil 

(Juliana dives, photo courtesy if FIVB)

TOP SEEDED MEN ATHLETES:

Seed  Team      Country

1  Alison Cerutti / Harley Marques  Brazil

2  Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers  USA

(Phil jump serves in AUS, photo courtesy of FIVB)

3  Julius Brink / Jonas Reckermann  Germany

4  Pedro Cunha / Pedro Salgado  Brazil

 

(Pedro Cunha in Shanghai, photo courtesy of FIVB)

5  Emanuel Rego / Ricardo Santos  Brazil 

(Emanuel Rego photo courtesy of FIVB)

ABOUT UNIVERSAL SPORTS: Universal Sports, a partnership between NBC Sports and InterMedia Partners, serves as the preeminent multiplatform destination for Olympic-related and lifestyle sports programming available on television and online. Universal Sports is now available in nine of the top 10 DMAs including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas-Fort Worth and Washington, D.C. Recent expansion includes launches in Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Denver, Portland, and Jacksonville. Go to UniversalSports.com for a complete list of TV markets. Major world championship and Olympic qualifying events found on Universal Sports range from track and field, skiing, swimming, gymnastics, marathons and cycling, to volleyball, rowing, triathlon, fencing, speed skating and martial arts. UniversalSports.com delivers an immersive experience via live and on-demand competition coverage, interaction with top athletes through blogs and in-depth access to Olympic sports news and information year round. For more information on the availability of the Universal Sports 24-hour television channel, please visit UniversalSports.com.

Does beach volleyball need cheerleaders, no it's a real question, seriously.

"They're trying to bottle the California beach lifestyle, and they think sexy girls in bikinis is part of that,'' McPeak said. "I don't necessarily agree. I think having world-class athletes competing is just as sexy.

"The athletes are sexier and hotter than any dancing girl that gets out there. I don't think beach volleyball needs it. These athletes are fit; it's a healthy lifestyle. So it's sexy as it is.''

Holly McPeak, 3-time USA beach volleyball Olympian volleyball quote on NBCOlympics.com about cheerleaders or dance leaders on the sand during beach volleyball tournaments.