AVP Players, Officials Exploring Their Options

Manhattan Beach resident Chris McGee, host and voice of the AVP for the last 12 years, is among a group of pro volleyball players who face an uncertain future.

McGee said it was a scary weekend after the AVP announced last Friday that it suspended the remainder of the 2010 season.

"There are so many people out of work and without benefits," McGee said on Monday during The Net Live webcast. "I have to figure out where to go with my career from here and how to take care of my family."

During a conference call Friday, players and AVP staff expressed mixed emotions–from laughter and joking, to anger and frustration–amid questions about the outlook of their careers.

Many players have jobs around their practice and tournament schedule, so the change is not as big of a lifestyle shock, some said. However, for people like Olympian Jake Gibb, volleyball is their profession.

"When I heard there was no U.S. tour, I was absolutely knocked off my feet," Gibb said. "I took it harder because this is my full-time job, so it's really hard to hear. I'm bummed."

Some of the younger and less experienced players are also taking a hard hit. Heather Hughes, a former USA Indoor National Team player, just switched to the beach three weeks ago. She has been training every day and competing in AVP qualifiers in hopes of playing on the AVP tour.

For Hughes, the options now are slim.

"I just transitioned over, so I'm so upset," Hughes said. "A lot of players are talking about playing in New Zealand or on different tours here in the states. Some people have urged me to go overseas and play indoors again. But I just got here. I don't know what I'm going to do now."

Other issues included individual player contracts with sponsors. During his interview on The Net Live, Gibb addressed whether his contract included a kill-clause, in case the AVP were to go bankrupt and end the season.

"I am working on that with my agent right now," Gibb said. "We don't know how it's going to work out. Obviously the sponsors care about television time and exposure, and without that, I don't know how they will react."

With few options available, the players are focusing on the coming weekend, which marks the 50th anniversary of the Manhattan Beach Open, a tournament that was created years before the AVP began.

The California Beach Volleyball Association and the City of Manhattan Beach have agreed to hold the event as scheduled, Patch reported Monday. They are currently negotiating with sponsors on logistics, including prize money and setup.

However, the nature of the tournament will be much different than previous AVP events.

The games will return to the "old school" style of 10 years ago, with larger courts, no antennas and side-out scoring, like games seen during the Karch Kiraly era.

A handful of players said they are excited to see the event take place. But some top players, including Gibb and Kerri Walsh, said they will not participate in the tournament because of the changes back to the old style.

The change is a tough transition from the current style of play to that of the 90s, players said during the call. To play even one weekend in a different format would detract from their performance in upcoming events with the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB).

McGee said Monday morning that despite these concerns, he is still looking forward to this weekend.

"I'd love to see everyone rally around this tournament,'' he said. ''Regardless of the size of the court or the rules, it'd be such a great story to see the volleyball community, players, coaches and fans rally together in an effort to show their love and support for the game."