Australian Beach Volleyball tour arrives in Mollymook this weekend

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The Australian Beach Volleyball Tour (ABVT) will make its way to the Shoalhaven on the NSW South Coast this week.

The Australian Beach Volleyball Tour (ABVT) will make its way to the Shoalhaven on the NSW South Coast this week for the inaugural Mollymook Open (18-20 February).

The 2022 ABVT is set to deliver another action packed weekend of beach volleyball, continuing on from a great opening leg at the Cobram-Barooga Classic earlier this month.

Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist and Tokyo Olympian Chris McHugh and his new partner Paul Burnett will headline the Men’s Elite division, with a target on their backs after winning the event in Cobram, following a few tight three-set battles.

Having teamed up at the end of 2021, McHugh said the duo are still finding their groove as teammates, but feeling more confident after their Cobram win.

“We take confidence every time we step on the court,” McHugh said.

“We’re still a relatively new team so we’re still working out some things in our game and within our team structure.

“Paul played some really good defense in Cobram and it’s an element of our game we can continue to improve.

“Going into Mollymook, we’re now the hunted and everyone is trying to give us a bit of a beat down so we’ve got to keep on our A-Game,” he said.

In the women’s event, Phoebe Bell and Stefanie Fejes will be aiming to defend their Cobram crown, heading in again as number one seeds.

Cobram was Bell and Fejes’ first tournament together, so they quickly had to discover each other’s strengths, weaknesses and style of play whilst in competition mode.

Bell said she felt like the pair were finding their rhythm towards the end of the tournament, which will help them going into Mollymook.

“I think we were finally starting to find our flow in offence towards the end of Cobram, so that’s something I want to start with leading into Mollymook,” Bell said.

“I had so much fun playing with Phoebe as we explored the ways for our team to thrive and flow,” Fejes added.

“I would definitely love to keep building on our team dynamics and just playing a free and enjoyable game full of variety in Mollymook.”

The Mollymook Open will also see the return of Rio 2016 Olympian Nikki Laird and her partner Jessyka Ngauamo, who will be looking to get back onto the National Tour podium after missing the Cobram-Barooga Classic.

The ABVT is also the perfect platform for Volleyball Australia’s high performance athletes who have begun to ramp up preparations for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games will take place from 28 July to 8 August 2022.

To be in the stands in Birmingham supporting the Australian Team, for the first time Australian families and fans will be able to access group tickets for all events at the Commonwealth Games.

The Family & Fans Tour ensures Australian families and fans can sit and cheer together, stay together and play together at the Birmingham Games.

Tour packages are available; however, numbers are limited.

Bookings are now open, learn more about the Family & Fans Tour below.

BIRMINGHAM 2022 FAMILY & FANS TOUR

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is coming – and you could be there to witness history in the making.

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