Beach volleyball in winter? Outside, this would be rather difficult, with the current temperatures. That is why in Kirchweidach, in the Altötting district of Upper Bavaria, the volleyball players have thought of something special, moving the beach to the Steiner company's tomato halls.
Normally, at the Steiner vegetable farm in Kirchweidach, cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes are grown in large greenhouses. In its halls, the temperatures are very high, so playing beach volleyball is really an option there. And that is why the Kirchweidachers have converted the packaging hall into a beach volleyball hall.
Christian Wolfertstetter heads the volleyball department of FC Kirchweidach. He admits that they have been dreaming about this project for a long time: "We always figured that a volleyball field really belonged in these halls. But nobody expected that this would really come to pass and that these beer-fuelled dreams would become reality."
300 tons of sand distributed in the hall
The whole thing was organized by the volleyball department Kirchweidach and the local vintage car club. About 50 volunteers have been working here for weeks. They have hauled 300 tons of sand into the hall. Four days and eleven trucks later, the two fields were ready.
Florian Steiner, the junior boss of the organic farm, could not have imagined what could be done with his hall. He says: "A few weeks ago we packed tomatoes there and now there is a fantastic beach atmosphere."
When no official games are taking place, the 'field' are rented out. The employees of the vegetable farm are also allowed to play in the sand. A few beach volleyball players from Taching am See made reservations weeks ago. The volleyball youth team is using every free minute on the court. Beach volleyball in winter in the Upper Bavarian province, that is something special.
Players come from all over Germany
This Saturday, the Open Bavarian Indoor Beach Volleyball Championships will officially start in the vegetable hall. This is the only category 1+ tournament that takes place in winter throughout all of Germany. For the players it is a chance to collect points for the German beach volleyball ranking. Top players from the region and all over Germany travel to the town for this purpose.
Even two coaches from Berlin and Bundesliga players from Frankfurt and Mühldorf will be there. In a side hall, Christian Wolfertstetter and the other helpers will be setting up a physio area including a self-built pool. They want to guarantee the players an all-round carefree package.
Three weeks full program
For three weeks now, the program is full. In the second weekend, the Chiemgau Beach Volleyball Championship will take place - where non-professionals can also compete. Thirty teams have registered. Finally, on January 25th there will be a beach party on the last weekend.
For co-organizer Christian Wolfertstetter, the tension is rising. It is the first time that they have organized this event. "We don't know exactly what's in store for us yet." By the way, the title of the event is: TomatOpen, championships in the tomato halls.
Source: BR24