How do the rules of Olympic beach volleyball differ from a real game on the beach?
At the professional level, the sport remained fairly obscure until the 1980s when beach volleyball experienced a surge in popularity. Players like Karch Kiraly and Sinjin Smith became household names.[citation needed] In 1987, the FIVB created the first World Beach Volleyball Championships, played in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. The FIVB began organizing worldwide professional tournaments, and laid the groundwork for the sport’s Olympic debut in 1996. [3] Despite its increased popularity in the 80’s and 90’s, American beach volleyball suffered setbacks. In early 1998, the American women’s professional tour – the WPVA – closed its doors and filed for bankruptcy. Later that same year, the American professional men’s tour – the AVP – also filed for bankruptcy, plagued by problems as a player-run organization. [3] In 2001, the AVP reemerged as a for-profit, publicly-traded company that combined the men’s and women’s professional tours, with equal prize money for both sexes. Kerri Walsh and Mist
