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For Immediate Release
| Contact: | Kendra Calvert Blue Equity, LLC Tel: 502.588.7159 kcalvert@blueequity.com |
Louisville Serves Up Another Hot Summer Event!
AVP Crocs Tour Louisville Open returns to Waterfront Park over Memorial Day weekend showcasing Olympic Athletes
LOUISVILLE, KY, February 26, 2008 - You don't have to go to Beijing to see Olympic athletes — look no further than Louisville, KY. So get out the shades, flip-flops and sun tan lotion because pro beach volleyball is back in 2008.
AVP Inc., and co-promoters SFX Worldwide, a Blue Equity Company, and Reach Event Marketing are excited to announce that the AVP Crocs Tour Louisville Open will be held May 23-26 over Memorial Day weekend. Once again Waterfront Park will be the site of the biggest beach party the city has ever seen.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at avp.com/louisville, Tickets.com, or charged by phone at 1-800-919-6272. Prices range from $15 (GA) to $35 (Courtside) with special discounts for kids, groups, senior citizens and students. All session packages are also available ranging from $65 (GA) to $125 (Courtside).
A press conference is scheduled for today at 10:30 a.m. at Assumption High School to formally kick-off the event and will feature several key business leaders and prominent members of the community including Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson, Diane McGraw, President of the Greater Louisville Sports Commission, Jim Wood, President & CEO of the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau and David Karem, Executive Director, Waterfront Development Corporation. Key members of the volleyball community will include Assumption Head Coach Ron Kordes, Tandem Sport President Anne Brown and Mitzy Donhoff, Kentucky Volleyball Association. AVP Tour players Nicole Branagh and Jen Boss will be in attendance to promote this exciting event. Branagh and playing partner Elaine Youngs, a 2004 Olympic Bronze Medalist, are currently the No. 2-ranked United States women's team in Olympic qualifying points for the Beijing Olympic Games. Boss, along with partner April Ross, were the sixth ranked team on the AVP Tour last season.
The AVP returned to Louisville last year for the first time since 1999 and was warmly greeted with high levels of enthusiasm by the entire community, prompting AVP Commissioner Leonard Armato to pronounce during the men's trophy presentation that, "This is one of best first-time events ever." Armato on the event returning to Louisville in 2008 stated: "We are excited to once again showcase the best professional beach volleyball athletes at the 2008 AVP Louisville Open, an event that has the potential to become one the Tour's flagship events."
Making this year's event even more special is that it will provide fans a great opportunity to witness several other athletes in action — in addition to Branagh and Youngs — who will likely be competing in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games including 2004 Gold Medalists Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh and the internationally-ranked men's team of Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers.
"Hosting these athletes and Olympic hopefuls is very exciting," said Bob Slattery, President of Reach Event Marketing. "We look forward to cheering them on in Louisville and also later in the summer in Beijing as they represent the United States in the 2008 Summer Games."
May-Treanor and Walsh along with Dalhausser and Rogers are the defending Louisville Open champions. Over 150 of the top players in the world will be competing in Louisville.
"We are thrilled to bring the AVP Louisville Open back to the Waterfront this year," said Jonathan Blue, Chairman and Managing Director of Blue Equity. "This event is like no other in the city and we expect a great turnout this year."
The event will be hosted by the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Greater Louisville Sports Commission.
"The volleyball tournament is a great event for our city," Mayor Jerry Abramson said. "Louisville is becoming a great sports city, and we're proud to showcase our community to visitors and athletes."
"We are excited and proud that AVP Pro Beach volleyball will once again be back in the city of Louisville for 2008," said Diane McGraw, President of the Greater Louisville Sports Commission. "This is truly a great event that the players and fans and the downtown community enjoyed immensely last year. We're proud to host another spectacular sporting event in downtown Louisville."
Event Schedule and Format
Friday, May 23 - Day Session (Qualifying rounds) - 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. - Free admission
Saturday, May 24 - Day Session (Session 1, Main Draw), 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 24 - Night Session (Session 2, Main Draw), 7:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 25 - Day Session (Session 3, Main Draw), 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 25 - Night Session (Session 4, Main Draw), 7:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Monday, May 26 - Day Session (Session 5 Main Draw), 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (men's final at approximately 2:30 p.m., women's final to follow)
Sponsorship Packages
Sponsorship packages offering significant national and regional exposure along with unique client hospitality opportunities are currently available. Local event sponsors so far include Caesars Indiana, Chevrolet, Tickets.com, KORT (Kentucky Orthopedic Rehab Team) and WHAS 11 News. National sponsors include Crocs, Nautica, Bud Light, Cuervo, Herbalife, Hilton, XBOX 360, Liftoff, McDonald's, Gatorade, Paul Mitchell, Nature Valley, Wilson and Banana Boat.
Online Information
For updated 2008 event information including sponsorships, hospitality, tickets, schedules and general announcements throughout the year go online at www.mustseeavp.com or www.avp.com/louisville or call 1-800-781-4296
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About the AVP
AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, Inc. is a leading lifestyle sports entertainment company focused on the production, marketing and distribution of professional beach volleyball events worldwide. AVP operates the industry's most prominent national touring series, the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, which was organized in 1983. Featuring more than 150 of the top American men and women competitors in the sport, AVP, including the Hot Winter Nights Tour, is set to stage 37 events throughout the United States in 2008. In 2004, AVP athletes successfully represented the United States during the Olympics in Athens, Greece, winning gold and bronze medals, the first medals won by U.S. women in professional beach volleyball. For more information, please visit www.avp.com.
About Blue Equity
Blue Equity's holdings in sports are comprised of SFX Worldwide, Worldwide Football, Blackwave Sports, Team Championships International (TCI), Humarks and Game Seven Sports Marketing. Current clients include Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, NFL Pro Bowlers DeAngelo Hall, Will Smith and Michael Vick, NBA All-Star Rasheed Wallace, 2007 NBA Lottery picks Joakim Noah and Corey Brewer, Australian, French and US Open Champion Justine Henin, US Open Champion Andy Roddick, No. 1 doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan, Minnesota basketball coach Tubby Smith, Arizona State basketball coach Herb Sendek, Louisville football coach Steve Kragthorpe, Ole Miss basketball coach Andy Kennedy, Arkansas basketball coach John Pelphrey and Massachusetts basketball coach Travis Ford. Media & Event properties include the US Open Tennis Championship, the French Open Tennis Championship, the Legg Mason Tennis Classic, numerous US-based ATP tournaments, Rock 'n Racquets, Hoop It Up, Let It Fly, Kick It, the Boston Marathon, EliteXC Mixed Martial Arts, the Superstars Competition, the AVP Beach Volleyball tour, Ice Wars, the World Cup of Softball, Basketball Hall of Fame Challenge, the Men's and Womens' Fifth Third Bank Tennis Championships and the Men's Ford Tennis Championship.
www.sfxworldwide.com | www.blackwavesports.com | www.teamchampionships.com | www.game-seven.com | www.humarks.com
Blue Equity, LLC is an independent, private equity firm based in Louisville, Kentucky. It is committed to actively investing growth capital and business expertise in enterprises with solid development potential. Blue Equity forms strategic partnerships with existing management teams and leverages its expertise and relationships to stabilize, strengthen and grow lasting value. Investment efforts and managerial expertise are focused on the operation of a global and diversified portfolio of business enterprises, including opportunities in media, publishing, sports and entertainment, financial services, real estate and international trade. Blue Equity is dedicated to helping businesses grow by accelerating opportunity and driving innovation to the marketplace. www.blueequity.com
About Reach Event Marketing
Reach Event Marketing (REM) is a full-service event marketing company that specializes in organizing, marketing and promoting regional and national events including the AVP Crocs Tour Cincinnati Open, AVP Louisville Open, and i-wireless High School Tour. REM offers strategic marketing expertise at the grassroots level in many areas including the selling of advertising, sponsorship and hospitality packages, ticket sales management, and promotion. In addition to event marketing the company also publishes Hacks High School Sports Magazine. For more information, please visit www.reacheventmarketing.com.