Despite being a relatively new sport in the country and not very popular among Bhutanese sports enthusiasts, the ongoing beach volleyball tournament is attracting huge spectators. Although it was a working day, the second day of the tournament saw several sports enthusiasts flocking to the Changlimithang parking area to witness this international spectacle firsthand.
Although Bhutanese audience are unfamiliar with beach volleyball rules, they still came to watch the Central Asia Volleyball Association’s beach volleyball tournament unbothered by the downpour.
Beach volleyball, as per the International Volleyball Federation, is played by two teams on a sand court divided by a net.
Each team has three hits to return the ball. A team winning two consecutive sets win the match.
Tandin Dorji, a spectator said “Since I didn’t play beach volleyball I don’t know much about its rules. However, if you look at how they play, it is really fun to watch. In the past, we could only see something like this on TV but seeing it live is more fun.”
Unlike indoor volleyball, in beach volleyball, two players in each team cover the court which was more exciting for the Bhutanese crowd.
Guru Tshering, another spectator said “When it comes to entertainment, I think beach volleyball is more entertaining. Beach volleyball is more challenging because two players have to cover the entire court.”
The audience showed genuine interest in witnessing more beach volleyball tournaments in the country.
Jamyang Dorji, a spectator said “When we play between ourselves it is hard to estimate our level of play. Only after competing with international teams, we can understand their level and see what we can improve on.”
The semi-finals and finals will be played tomorrow. 18 teams from the Maldives, Nepal, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Bhutan are taking part in the three-day tournament.
Tenzin Loday Gyeltshen
Edited by Phub Gyem
