Fair Play
It promises to be a humdinger of an event when the best Volleyball players in Europe play the Championship matches in Poland and Denmark from 20 to 29 September 2013. Not only will the fans be in for some spectacular matches, but they will also have their say in which European club will take home the newly-established VELUX Serve Ace award.
Nominated by the federations, awarded by the fans
Before the beginning of the 2013 CEV VELUX Volleyball European Championship, the VELUX Group has asked all of the 16 participating national Volleyball federations to nominate one Volleyball club for its extraordinary work in promoting fair play in the sport.
Throughout the tournament, the VELUX Group will donate 15 Euros per serve ace made to a pot that will be awarded to three of the nominated clubs. The winners of the award will be decided by the fans.
Almost 300 serve aces in 2011
The winner of the fair play competition will be the club that receives the most votes before 6 PM (CEST) on Sunday 29 September. The winning team will receive 50 per cent of the pot amassed by the number of serve aces. The team coming second will receive 35 per cent and the team coming third 15 per cent. In all cases, the prize money will be spent on continuing and further improving the clubs work with fair play.
In the 2011 edition of the Championship, players from 16 nations made a total of 299 serve aces, which would now result in almost 4,500 Euros being awarded to the clubs.
VELUX Serve Ace
The 16 nominees
MKS MDK Warszawa, Poland
MKS MDK Warszawa has been nominated by the Polish Volleyball Federation because of its strong focus on promoting young players’ physical culture and social values. MKS MDK Warszawa has also been recognised as “Best Polish – Youth Section Volleyball” and awarded both the silver and gold medal of honour by the Polish Volleyball Federation.
TV Bliesen e.V., Germany
TV Bliesen e.V. has been nominated by the German Volleyball Federation because the club cooperates with 14 schools in its state to find talented new players and support them in their development. From a very young age, the club teaches them the concept of fair play during their training, matches etc.
Knack Volley Roeselare, Belgium
Knack Volley Roeselare has been nominated by the Belgian Volleyball Federation because the club has an excellent and active youth department that does great work in its local community in promoting Volleyball as a clean sport that is about fair play and honesty.
CZU Praha, Czech Republic
The Czech Volleyball Federation has nominated volleyball.cz CZU Praha for furthering fair play, honesty and clean sport not only in Prague but throughout the Czech Republic.
ES Voleybol, Turkey
The Turkish Volleyball Federation has nominated ES Voleybol for its work in raising interest in Volleyball by hosting a “Volley festival” for children in a local park. Furthermore, ES Voleybol is an amateur Volleyball club that builds its own sport halls using its own financial resources.
Vojvodina NS SEME, Serbia
The Serbian Volleyball Federation has nominated Vojvodina NS SEME because the club has always promoted Volleyball in the local community. It supports young Volleyball players and awakens interest in the sport among the new generation. The club has always been known for endorsing fair play, honesty and clean sport.
Ecare Apollo 8, Netherlands
The Dutch Federation has nominated Ecare Apollo 8 for the club’s success in both its sporting results and its social work. A good example is its Saturnus Project, which provides services for elderly and disabled people. Its impressive social involvement is inspiring and makes this club unique.
Grøndal EV, Denmark
The Danish Volleyball Federation has nominated Grøndal EV because the club has had great success in attracting young Danes as new members of the Volleyball club. At the centre of it all is Thorbjørn Svendsen. His work in taking care of all the youth players is entirely voluntary and he does a great job in recruiting new Volleyball players at neighbouring schools.
ACH Volley Ljubljana, Slovenia
The Slovenian Volleyball Federation has nominated ACH Volley Ljubljana because of its excellent results at the international level and because the club mentors young players, teaching them the rules of Volleyball – and life.
Salon Viesti, Finland
The Finnish Volleyball Federation has nominated Salon Viesti because all its coaches encourage children and make them feel important. The children are guided to be a part of a real fair play team, so that there is no discrimination or bad behaviour towards other players.
Victoria Volley, Bulgaria
The Bulgarian Volleyball Federation has nominated Victoria Volley for its work in promoting and developing youth Volleyball. The young players playing in the higher Bulgarian league always show perfect fair play performance and thereby serve as a shining example for other Bulgarian clubs.
Stroitel Minsk, Belarus
The Volleyball Federation of Belarus has nominated Stroitel Minsk not only for its successful performance but also because it is a club that tries constantly to develop and improve its organisation. It is also a very popular club with a lot of fans, so this club is also a great ambassador for Volleyball in Belarus.
A.S. CANNES, France
The French Volleyball Federation has nominated A.S. CANNES because the club won the “PROMO VOLLEY” contest in France in 2013. The main criteria for the club being awarded is that it works hard to promote Volleyball in their region, their active marketing strategy, the good results of their youth teams and the fact that they have the shortest record of game sanctions.
Tonno Callipo Calabria Vibo Valentia, Italy
Tonno Callipo Calabria Vibo Valentia has been nominated by the Italian Volleyball Federation because the club promotes Volleyball in its local community. Furthermore the club has an active youth department, where it implements fair play, honesty and clean sport.
Belogorie Belgorod, Russia
The Russian Volleyball Federation has nominated Belogorie Belgorod, the Russian Champion in 2013. The club has one of the country’s best training systems. The club is in possession of a training center, a sport hall for 4,500 spectators, a 4-star hotel as well as a special training school for children.
VK Chemes Humenné, Slovakia
The Slovakian Volleyball Federation has nominated VK Chemes Humenné because it is one of the best and most successful Volleyball clubs in Slovakia over the last 10 years. VK Chemes Humenne is a 2-time national champion and annual participant in the European Cups. The club implements fair play and it also has a strong youth program.
For more information about this competition click on European Championship 2013 M.
