Beach volleyball’s biggest stars, including Olympians April Ross, Jennifer Kessy, Todd Rogers, and Jake Gibb, will take to the sand at Hudson River Park’s Pier 26/25 for Main Draw Play on Friday
Eight Teams advance through Thursday’s men’s and women’s open qualifiers at Hudson River Park and Brooklyn Bridge Park
Autograph sessions with three-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings on Friday and Saturday
NEW YORK (July 16, 2015) – Top seeds Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson and April Ross and Jen Fopma will take to the sand on Friday as main draw play begins at the AVP Kingston New York City Open, the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball’s first-ever tournament in Manhattan. Competition kicks off at 9 a.m. ET at Hudson River Park’s Pier 26/25 along Lower Manhattan’s West Side and continues through Sunday, July 19th. General admission is free.
The tournament is the second on the AVP’s 2015 schedule and the only stop in the Northeast. The AVP has held tournaments in Brooklyn, Uniondale, the Hamptons and other parts of New York State in years past, but has never brought the beach to Manhattan until now.
In addition to Gibb, a two-time Olympian, Patterson, Ross, a silver medalist in London (2012), and Fopma, Olympic gold medalist Todd Rogers (2008), Olympic silver medalist Jennifer Kessy (2012), and rising stars Emily Day and Stafford Slick are also set to compete. Ryan Doherty, a NJ-native, is seeded No. 2 with partner John Mayer. Kessy and Day are seeded No. 2 in the women’s bracket.
Thursday featured men’s and women’s qualifying tournaments – the men at Hudson River Park and the women competing on Pier 6 at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Four teams from each side advanced to the main draw to fill out the 16-team brackets.
One team advancing into the main draw via Thursday’s qualifier is the duo of Kelly Claes (Fullerton, Calif.) and Sara Hughes (Costa Mesa, Calif.). 19-year-old Claes and 20-year-old Hughes are collegiate stars from USC’s sand volleyball program; they were seeded 10th in the qualifier and won both of their matches in straight sets, including a 21-15, 21-13 (0:38) upset over No. 2 seeds Lynne Brinkman-Galli and Lisa Rutledge. They enter Friday’s main draw as the 16th seed and take on top seed Ross and Fopma in their first match.
Earlier in the afternoon, AVP star and three-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, who is unable to compete this week due to injury, Ross, Kessy and Day visited the top of the world-famous Empire State Building in celebration of the tournament.
Walsh Jennings, who will be onsite to support the event, will sign autographs at Piers 26/25 on Friday and Saturday.
The AVP Kingston New York City Open finals will be broadcast live on NBC and begin at 1:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
The AVP thanks its partners – Kingston, Barefoot Refresh, Paul Mitchell, DripDrop, Jaybird, Rakuten, Hudson River Park and the National Honey Board – for their support of the AVP Kingston New York City Open.
The 2015 AVP Tour season kicked off in New Orleans in May; after New York City, the Tour heads to Seattle; Manhattan Beach, Calif.; Chicago; Cincinnati; and Huntington Beach, Calif. The AVP also hosted and operated an Olympic qualifying tournament on the FIVB Tour in St. Petersburg, Fla. in June.
AVP Kingston New York City Open Schedule:
Friday, July 17 (9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET)
Main-Draw Play at Hudson River Park, Pier 26/25
Saturday, July 18 (9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET)
Continuation of Main Draw Play at Hudson River Park, Pier 26/25
Sunday, July 19 (8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. ET)
Semifinals and Finals at Hudson River Park, Pier 26/25
*All times subject to change
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About The AVP
Established in 1983, the AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) produces, markets and distributes volleyball events worldwide, including the popular AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour. While promoting family-oriented events and supporting a healthy lifestyle, the AVP is best known for its world-class athletes, who have won numerous Gold, Silver and Bronze medals in the Olympic games. The AVP headquarters are in Costa Mesa, Calif.
About Hudson River Park Trust
Hudson River Park, the longest waterfront park in the United States, has transformed four miles of decaying piers and parking lots along Manhattan’s West Side into a beloved, urban recreational paradise. Attracting 17 million visits each year, the Park offers a myriad of recreational and educational activities for local residents and visitors alike, and plays a critical role in protecting the Hudson River environment itself. In its brief history, Hudson River Park has also served as an important catalyst for economic development and job creation. Over the past decade, it has attracted $3 billion in new construction at 94 new buildings in adjacent neighborhoods. The inspiration for numerous waterfront parks, city- and nation-wide, Hudson River Park represents the next great era in the history of urban parks — the birth of the waterfront park. The Hudson River Park Trust was created by State legislation to serve as a unique city-state entity overseeing the design, construction and operation of Park. The Trust does not receive any public operating monies, relying instead on income generated within the Park as well as private support for 100% of its annual operating budget. Today, people visit Hudson River Park to cycle the busiest bikeway in America, to sunbathe on green beaches, and to connect with the river. More than 135,000 people enjoyed free concerts, movies and dances here last summer. Over 400,000 people of all ages play on the Park’s beloved athletic fields and courts. And 7,500 children participate in free educational programming each year.
Media contacts:
Audra Silverman
Brener Zwikel & Associates
audras@bzapr.com
(732) 580-9719 mobile