COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 17, 2023) – More than 150 athletes in the Under-16 to Under-21 age divisions are registered to participate in the USA Volleyball National Team Development Program’s (NTDP) Beach Spring Training Series event on May 19-21 in Manhattan Beach, Calif.
This training gives junior beach volleyball athletes the chance to practice with and compete against some of the best athletes in the United States while receiving guidance from top coaches. For the first time, the Beach Spring Training Series also includes U21 athletes.
Participation in the Beach Training Series has age-group national team implications this year.
Four athletes per gender from the Fall 2022-Spring 2023 Training Series will be selected to complete the U21 Beach National Team roster. Two of those athletes will be selected to represent the U.S. at the 2023 FIVB U21 Beach World Championship on Nov. 8-12 in Thailand, should the U.S. be granted a second bid to the event. The first-place finishers at the U21 Beach National Team Trials on June 19-22 automatically qualify for the World Championship.
In the U19 division, two male and two female athletes will be selected from the Beach Training Series to compete at the Caribbean Beach Volleyball Invitational.
All training series are conducted by top Beach NTDP coaches and feature a comprehensive focus on the five pillars of the NTDP: Craft, Mind, Body, Heart and Team. Spring Training coaches include MBsand Director Patty Dodd, two-time U.S. Olympian Nick Lucena, three-time Olympian Holly McPeak and three-time Olympian Jake Gibb.
Athletes for the Spring Training Series were identified and invited based on recommendations from the Beach NTDP Scouting Network. The scouting network serves as the Beach NTDP talent identification process and includes coaches and experts from across the United States.
USA Volleyball regions that will be represented at the Beach Spring Training Series include Aloha, Arizona, Bayou, Carolina, Chesapeake, Evergreen, Florida, Gateway, Great Lakes, Gulf Coast, Hoosier, Keystone, Lone Star, Ohio Valley, Old Dominion, New England, Northern California, North Texas, Palmetto, Puget Sound, Rocky Mountain, Southern and Southern California.