Beach volleyball, a dream weekend in Amantea

Enthusiasm, passion, and love for the territory are the ingredients behind the success of Beach Volleyball International League Calabria, the event promoted by ASD Beach&Volley Amantea with the support of Calabria Straordinaria, which animated the Tyrrhenian centre for three days. In fact, in addition to the arena on the city's seafront and the involvement of the associations that took care of five other sports areas, there was also the excellent work of the Pro Loco, which brought many tourists and the BVIL athletes themselves to the historic centre to discover the charm of Amantea's history and traditions.

The stands were always packed and there was a lot of interest in the event, which for three days saw athletes from all over Europe competing on the golden sand of the Beach Volleyball Arena. In the men's pool, the Lithuanians Rumsevicius/Stasevicius came out on top in a splendid final, which saw a hard-fought first set end in the advantages after eight set points on both sides, over the young Frenchmen Elouan/Joadel, who we will certainly hear about in a couple of years at the Olympics in France. On the third step of the podium were the Italians Ceccoli/Carucci, who also carried our tricolour.

The women's tournament saw Reka Orsi Toth/Marolf triumph, with the former now well on her way to becoming one of the strongest beachers in our country, accompanied in this adventure by the Swiss Marolf, while her sister Vicky, another champion and former beach volleyball Olympian who is still injured today, commented on the finals from the parterre. Runners-up after a one-sided final were the Mattavelli/Pelloia pair, who showed great teamwork and growth during the three-day tournament. Third place was occupied by the Dalmazzo/Rottoli pair, who managed to combine experience and freshness, defeating the Israeli pair Ashush/Dave, who still have ample room for growth.

All this in front of stands that were always full from 6pm to midnight, with the public taking part both in what was happening on the pitch and animated and pushed by the organisation that did not fail to provide music, distribution of gadgets, games and entertainment.

Bvil Calabria was sport, but also show and entertainment. Among the stars of the event were the Aurora Dance, Enula's performance, which enlivened a Super Bowl break between the women's and men's finals. Performances that gave the audience a lot of emotion and good music. The singer, who took part in Amici, then stayed with the association's youngsters and the organisers to take part in the prize-giving ceremony together with the institutional representatives and the other partners and associations that made this truly extraordinary event possible, not only for what was seen on the pitch, but for the enthusiasm that she was able to convey to the city and to all those who followed the event on social media, which reached impressive numbers with the highest peaks obviously reached during the finals. Over 7,000 spectators can be estimated over three days, with the peaks reached for the evening matches, but already by 5pm there were many people crowded on the stands, braving the heat and the setting sun on the Stromboli, which nonetheless provided a unique and inimitable spectacle. There were excellent results for the other sporting activities, which averaged 300 youngsters per day among the various activities.