CPH Beach awarded best sports club in Copenhagen

Copenhagen Beach (CPH Beach) recently received the award for the best sports club in Copenhagen, with the prize presented by the Councillor for Culture and Sports of the Danish capital, Francisca Rosenkilde during a surprise visit paid to Hafnia Sports Centre.

This award represents a huge boost of motivation for the club as well as an acknowledgment towards their ability to involve non-members during the most difficult times and peak of the coronavirus pandemic. By establishing a medical taskforce involving staff and members comprised of biologists, medical doctors and life science specialists, the club helped control the process and supported the Danish Volleyball Federation in their decision making to navigate the crisis. With all indoor facilities shut down in response to the pandemic, the outdoor sand was a safe place where to deliver activities for small closed groups in strict compliance with a comprehensive coronavirus protocol and local health and safety guidelines.

Next to this, the clubs stands out for its ability to empower females – as two thirds of the Board members are women, while more women than men are participating in the sports activities. Moreover, the City of Copenhagen praised the ability of the club to deliver Beach Volleyball competitions in 2021.

The club has taken their share of responsibility building an environment where dedicated members divided into practice units interact on all levels - youth, senior, elite and international high-performance athletes.

Being able to bring the beach vibes and Beach Volleyball DNA into the city and sharing the sand with all citizens were additional assets singled out for attributing the award. The result is a big rise in membership and non-member participation in the sport, with 500 members in the winter period, 700 during the summer season and double that number when it comes to those who just visited and played at the club’s two facilities during the pandemic.

Moreover, the club has achieved significant sportive success too, winning the Danish Championship back to back for both genders in 2020 and 2021. Internationally, several athletes have secured podium finishes for Denmark before as well as following the outbreak of the pandemic. These include U20 European bronze medallists Sofia Bisgaard and Clara Windeleff who will enter the qualification round at the last World Tour 4-Star event in Itapema, Brazil, next week as well as the U19 World Championships scheduled for early December in Roi Et, Thailand.

CPH Beach represents the core of the Beach Volleyball Development Centre run by Volleyball Denmark and relies on coaches from Poland, Germany and Brazil supporting their activities, while working under the umbrella of Danish sports culture and governance.

The club won the same award in 2008. Aarhus Beachvolley received a similar prize from their regional sports federation last month. This is very impressive considering that Beach Volleyball remains a ‘niche sport’ in Denmark. With the award, CPH Beach received from the City of Copenhagen a 3,000 € check, a diploma and a delicious cake!