COLUMBUS (May 8, 2019) – Columbus will host some of America’s best volleyball players and leaders of the sport during the 2019 USA Volleyball Open National Championships and Annual Meetings May 20-29 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
Linda Shetina Logan, executive director, Greater Columbus Sports Commission, said approximately 4,000 attendees will visit Columbus and will use more than 7,700 hotel room nights across the city. Past hosts reported more than $7,000,000 in economic impact over the 10-day combined events.
“Columbus is honored to once again host USA Volleyball,” Logan said. “Columbus has a long history of hosting national volleyball events, and we’re ready to welcome the athletes, coaches, and fans to Columbus this Memorial Day weekend.”
Logan said more than 1,600 matches will take place during the tournament. Skill divisions (Open, AA, A, BB, B) are for athletes 18-and-over in both genders, while age divisions start at 40-and-over for men’s and women’s divisions and go up to 78-and-over for men and 60-and-over for women. The Opens will crown 26 total championships.
USA Volleyball, the sport’s national governing body, will also conduct its annual meetings prior to the championships, culminating in the annual USA Volleyball Hall of Fame inductions presented at the Boyce Banquet. Referee and scorekeeper re-certification clinics will also take place prior to the tournament.
“Columbus is an emerging powerhouse in the volleyball world,” said Kristy Cox, USA Volleyball’s director of events. “The city and Convention Center put on a first-class experience for our athletes, and we’re looking forward to seeing everything the city has to offer.”
This will be the tenth USA Volleyball event hosted by Columbus:
- USA Volleyball Open National Championships in 1930, 1952 and 2000. The 2019 event marks the fourth USA Volleyball Open National Championship held in Columbus;
- USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships in 2015 and 2017;
- USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships in 2012; and
- USA Volleyball Girls’ 18s National Qualifier event in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 (additionally, events are slated for 2020)
Additionally, Columbus hosted the 2016 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship, which will be returning to Columbus in 2021.