Wollman Rink Set For Beach Action

For Release: July 17, 1998

NEW YORK, N. Y. - After two nights of unloading over 982,000 pounds of sand at the newly-created beach volleyball facility at Central Park’s Wollman Rink, the venue is now ready for Goodwill Games competition.

The 490.83 tons of sand was prepared by Hutcheson Sand & Mixes (Huntsville, Ontario, Canada) and was transported 14 hours from Canada to Wollman Rink by P & H Transport (Mississauga, Ontario, Canada). A caravan of 16 tractor trailers (45-footers) arrived here Monday (July 13).

The late nights sessions Tuesday and Wednesday filled New York’s "largest sand box" to form the "Wollman Court". Construction on Manhattan’s premier beach volleyball facility was started July 10 when Mountain Productions (Scranton, Pa.) began bleacher preparation and formed "Wollman Court".

Under the direction of Venue Manager Elliot Winick and Site Manager Todd Barnes, the 3,000-seat facility will be available for its first practice session Monday at 8 a.m. (EDT) for the eight men’s teams from seven countries competing in the fourth Goodwill Games.

With Competition Manager Bobby Clarke watching the Mountain Productions’ construction of "Wollman Court", Wollman Rink is the site of the Goodwill Games’ second beach volleyball competition. The men’s and women’s Goodwill Games’ beach competition was introduced at St. Petersburg, Russia in 1994.

The Goodwill Games beach volleyball competition features $200,000 in prize money and starts Wednesday (July 22) for the men and July 29 for the women. The men’s Gold and Bronze medal matches are July 26 and the women vie for top honors August 2. The 1998 Goodwill Games beach competition features the 1994 champion tandems of Jan Kvalheim/Bjorn Maaseide of Norway and Karolyn Kirby/Liz Masakayan of the United States.

Adam Johnson/Karch Kiraly, United States
Guilherme Marques/Para Ferreira Souza, Brazil
Ricci Luyties/Sinjin Smith, United States
John Child/Mark Heese, Canada
Mark Laciga/Paul Laciga, Switzerland
Jan Kvalheim/Bjorn Maaseide, Norway
Julien Prosser/Leo Zahner, Australia
Martin Conde/Eduardo Martinez, Argentina

Shelda Bede/Adriana Behar, Brazil
Karolyn Kirby/Liz Masakayan, United States
Pauline Manser/Kerri Pottharst, Australia
Kristine Drakich/Guylaine Dumont, Canada
Lisa Arce/Holly McPeak, United States
Maike Friedrichsen/Danja Musch, Germany
Eva Celbova/Sona Dosoudilova, Czech Republic
Laura Bruschini/Annamaria Solazzi, Italy

Hutcheson Sand & Mixes

Hutcheson Sand & Mixes (www.hutchesonsand.com) is the leading supplier of non-calcareous, silica based sands in Canada. Whether used as straight sand or blended with other materials to produce chemically balanced rootzone products, Hutcheson Sand & Mixes supplies "the sand that makes the difference."

With the debut of beach volleyball at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the Bronze medal performance of Canada’s John Child and Mark Heese propelled Hutcheson Sand & Mixes as a leader in the production of sand products for the sport market.

Hutcheson Sand & Mixes has perfected a sand for beach volleyball for both indoor and outdoor courts. North Beach Volleyball Academy (Markham, Ontario, Canada) launched Canada’s first year-round indoor beach volleyball facility with Hutcheson "V" sand.

The Hutcheson "V" sand is of sub-angular particle shape to resist compaction and provides superior drainage. The tan-grey color absorbs less heat, is non-glare and an aesthetically pleasing granite-based, calcium free sand.

Hutcheson "V" sand remains stable through variable weather conditions and constant use. Hutcheson Sand Courts are essentially maintenance free. Because the sand never compacts, a light raking from time to time is the only maintenance required. Due to the excellent drainage, courts can be played on during, or within minutes after a heavy rain.