Beach Volleyball in Margate

9 July 2010, 17:54 | Updated: 11 July 2010, 11:19

The best beach volleyball players in the country are in Kent this weekend for the Margate Masters tournament.

Competitions are taking place on Saturday and Sunday on the main sands, which has been named as a pre-games training venue for athletes getting ready for the London Olympics in 2012.

Lisa Wainwright, CEO of Volleyball England, said: "This is an exciting time for volleyball in this country and Volleyball England is committed to raising the profile of the sport via events such as the beach tour.

"We want as many people as possible involved with the adaptable, challenging and fun sport of volleyball.

"Margate is an excellent place for us to host a Beach Tour event of the year, and I'd encourage anyone to come along to the Margate Masters for a great day out!"

This year, local people are also getting the chance to show off their volleyball skills in a competitionon Margate Main Sands on Sunday 11 July, starting at 9am and finishing at around 1pm, just before the elite finals of the Volleyball England Beach Tour competition starts.

Cllr. Martin Wise, Cabinet Member for Environmental Services, said: “This is a unique opportunity for local people to test out their beach volleyball skills on the same courts as the elite players who are the best in the country.

"Part of the aim of holding the Margate Masters beach volleyball is to encourage interest in sport locally and that’s what this competition is aiming to do.

"Margate is a superb venue for this event, as shown by the fact we were named as Best Tour Event last year. I look forward to welcoming all the players, be they elite, local children or taking part in the local standard competition, to another excellent event.”