PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (Reuters) – A snow volleyball exhibition on Wednesday showcased a sport organizers hope will one day be included in the Winter Olympics.
“We can show the world it’s possible,” said Brazilian beach volleyball player Emanuel Rego who won gold in the 2004 Summer Games and didn’t mind the cold and windy conditions in Pyeongchang.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s a little bit cold or a little bit hot, you can play volleyball anywhere,” he said.
Organizers of the exhibition match said they hoped it would follow the path of beach volleyball which has been an Olympic sport since the 1996 Summer Games.
Rego was joined by volleyball players from Brazil, Serbia, China, South Korea and Austria.
The first Snow Volleyball European Championships will be held in Austria in March with 24 men’s and 24 women’s teams competing.
(Reporting by Reuters Television, editing by Darren Schuettler and Ed Osmond)
