Thousands of athletes arrive in Minneapolis for the

88th USA Volleyball Open National Championships

(MINNEAPOLIS) —May 26, 2017— More than 4,500 athletes will descend upon Minneapolis this Memorial Day weekend for the 88th USA Volleyball Open National Championships at the Minneapolis Convention Center from Friday, May 26 – Wednesday, May 31. This year’s Open will feature 464 teams competing from coast-to-coast including 31 international teams representing Canada, Brazil, Mexico and Russia.

“Minneapolis is a vibrant sports city, and we are thrilled to welcome the athletes, coaches, officials, families and staff for the 2017 USA Volleyball Open National Championships,” said Melvin Tennant, president and CEO, Meet Minneapolis and executive director, Sports Minneapolis. “The love of volleyball brings thousands of players and spectators together for this exciting tournament generating more than 7,100 room nights over the tournament dates.”

“The USA Volleyball Open National Championships is one of the largest championships in any sport in the United States and has been a signature event of USAV for more than 80 years,” said Jamie Davis, CEO, USA Volleyball. “This event is a symbol of great pride for us as we promote volleyball as a lifelong sport, and we’re excited to bring the tournament back to Minneapolis.”

To add to the excitement, the U.S. Paralympic Women’s and Men’s Sitting Volleyball Teams will be scrimmaging on Saturday at 3 p.m. and on Sunday at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. The U.S. Women’s Sitting Team won the gold medal at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

The USA Volleyball Open National Championships have taken place in Minneapolis in 1945, 2003 and 2009. Minneapolis has also been the host city for several other USA Volleyball events, most recently the 2014 USA Volleyball Girl’s Junior National Championship. This event will return to Minneapolis on June 25 – July 4, 2017.

Volleyball spectators are encouraged to get in on the action at the Minneapolis Convention Center. The event is free to the public. No tickets required. For the tournament schedule, visit: bit.ly/17OpenHome and join the conversation online with #USAVopen.

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ABOUT USA VOLLEYBALL

Founded in 1928, USA Volleyball is a Colorado incorporated non-profit organization recognized by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the Federation International de Volleyball (FIVB) as the National Governing Body for the sport of Volleyball in the United States. USAV is responsible for both the Olympic disciplines of indoor volleyball and beach volleyball. USAV has more than 262,000 registered members, 12,000 teams and 5,300 clubs nationwide. With an annual budget in excess of $18 million dollars, USA Volleyball supports the USA men’s and women’s senior national team programs, youth and junior national teams, national championship events, coaching education and certification programs, grassroots development, and programs for the disabled and Paralympic Teams. USA Volleyball has a rich tradition of success. www.usavolleyball.org

ABOUT MEET MINNEAPOLIS

Meet Minneapolis is a private, not-for-profit, member-based association. It actively promotes and sells the Minneapolis area as a destination for conventions and meetings, works to maximize the visitor experience and markets the city as a desirable tourist destination to maximize the economic benefit of the greater Minneapolis area.

Meet Minneapolis is accredited by the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP) of the Destination Marketing Association International.

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MEDIA CONTACT

Kristen Montag, Meet Minneapolis senior public relations and communications manager, 612-767-8038, kristenm@minneapolis.org, @Minneapolis_PR on Twitter.