GB volleyball team struggles to catch advertisers' eyes

[richard]

Half a million tickets have been sold for beach volleyball events at the London 2012 Olympics next summer, yet the women’s GB squad has so far failed to secure major sponsorship.

But while the players, who cut striking figures and performing energetically in the sand in barely-there bikinis, believe they may have been hampered by a ‘Baywatch with balls’ image.

The lack of sponsorship means the team must in effect pay to play for their country, despite the skimpy outfits helping to make it the second most popular event after the men’s 100m final.

Essex-born Lucy Boulton, 25, who is ranked second in Britain with her partner Denise Johns, 32, said: ‘The outfits will put some companies off.

'There is a stigma and it is not taken as seriously as other sports.

‘But it is a double-edged sword. We have to be realistic and accept that the bikinis also help to get people to the event.’

South African-born Shauna Mullin, 27, who forms GB’s number one duo with Zara Dampney, 25, said many people were still ‘stuck’ in the mindset that ‘beach volleyball is about sex, not a sport’.

She added: ‘Companies aren’t going to part with their money if they don’t think of it as a serious sport.

'If they see it at a high level, they will hopefully see it is a dynamic and skilful game’.

Top players earn about £16,000 a year through National Lottery funding, administered by UK Sport and the British Volleyball Federation, which covers budget hotels and flights for international competitions.

They have to raise extra cash through sponsorship, prize money and even the bank of mum and dad.


source
By Louise Eccles
Home | Mail Online

Image: The GB Beach Volleyball Olympic team (l to r): Zara Dampney, Shauna Mullin, Denise Johns and Lucy Boulton

[richard]

I spotted the above post on the Daily Mail website and thought what a sad state of affairs this is, and isn't it just typical of the UK governments when they can spend untold billions on preparing for the London 2012 games, yet they can't adequately fund our athletes who are going to compete in it.

They find millions to go warmongering abroad and on silly wind-turbine projects, billions on bailing out failed bankers and failing countries and don't mention that Euro currency which is going the same way as the dodo. Yet walk away from properly funding our athletes for London 2012.

As for big businesses failing to sponsor them, for the cost of one or two unwarranted bank bonuses would have set our athletes in good stead. The rest of us seem to be somewhat cash-starved due to the thing called a recession caused by non other than those unworthy bankers and thirteen years of being ruined by the Labour government, namely, Blair, Brown, Balls and all the other delusional idiots who call themselves right honourable members of parliament - don't make me laugh, they should be locked up for the damage they have done to this country.

Would just serve us right if we don't win any gold medals then we would be the laughing stock of the world.

This whole thing stinks

[farahnaz783]

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