COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Sept. 21, 2021) – Some of USA Volleyball’s top young beach athletes will hit the sand in the next few weeks for the Beach National Team Development Program (NTDP) Fall Training Series.

More than 160 athletes will participate in one of two camps based on each :

  • Gulf Shores, Ala., Sept. 24-26
  • Manhattan Beach, Calif., Oct. 8-10

Regardless of the camp they attend, athletes will participate in four training sessions spread across three days. Top Beach NTDP coaches will conduct the training, which will focus on the volleyball skills and systems that lead to success at the international level.

“We are looking forward to the Beach NTDP Fall Training Series,” Erin Virtue, Director, NTDP said. “This is a wonderful group of athletes coming together to continue the learning that began over the summer. We are thrilled to have our nation’s best training alongside our top coaches this fall.”

With camps split between the East and West Coasts, athletes can train closer to home.  More than 40% of the Gulf Shores camp participants neighbor the Gulf Shores Region, and well over half of Manhattan Beach camp athletes live in the Southern California Region.

In addition to a unique roster, each location will feature its own coaching cadre. The Gulf Shores staff includes U.S. Beach National Team Coach and Brazilian Olympian Jose Loiola, LSU head coach Russell Brock, U.S. Beach National Team Coach Jordan Cheng and former Brazilian National Team athlete Eduardo “Anjinho” Bacil.

Highlighting the Manhattan Beach cadre is U.S. Beach Olympian Barbara Fontana. Other notable instructors include collegiate head coaches Andrew Fuller (Stanford), Meagan Owusu (Cal) and Danko Iordanov (University of Saint Katherine) and U.S. Beach National Team Coach Patty Dodd.

The NTDP is USA Volleyball’s youth development pathway for all volleyball disciplines and genders. Athletes invited to participate in the Fall Training Series have been identified by the NTDP Scouting Network. The invited athletes who participate in this program are in strong consideration to train in the upcoming 2021 Winter, 2022 Spring and 2022 Summer NTDP Training Series.

Fall Training Series participants also receive access to newly released NTDP Academy content.