KFUM Stavanger Volleyball, the Norwegian Volleyball Federation (NVBF), and Region Stavanger headed south for the European Sitting Volleyball Championship to sign the agreement between Para Volley Europe (PVE), KFUM, and NVBF confirming Stavanger as the host city in 2025.
It was a different start to this year’s autumn break for the delegation that traveled to Italy, but with a signed contract in hand on their way home, volleyball in Norway can look forward to an exciting planning period for the home championship.
Sitting Volleyball in Norway
Sitting volleyball is one of the world’s largest parasports and one of the 28 Paralympic sports. Norway participated with a national team for the first time in the Paralympic Games in 1980, winning a silver medal in Atlanta 1996. In 2000, the Norwegian national team failed to qualify and eventually disbanded. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of active players, partly due to the efforts of KFUM Stavanger Volleyball, which started sitting volleyball in 2014.
The goal now is to establish a new official national team for the 2025 championship that can compete at the top level and regain a strong position in the sport. The application process has been positive, increasing the focus on sitting volleyball as a discipline within para-sports, as highlighted by NRK in their news coverage earlier this year.
The application is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Rogaland County Council, and the Municipality of Stavanger, with assistance in the application process from Region Stavanger.
KFUM Stavanger Volleyball
The club was founded in 1963 and has organized the Vestcup, Norway’s largest indoor volleyball tournament, for the past 34 years. Sitting volleyball started at KFUM in 2014, and they have already hosted several tournaments, including the International Sit Cup since 2019, which will celebrate its fifth anniversary in 2024. With the upcoming hosting of the European Championship in 2025, they bring extensive experience and expertise to ensure a successful tournament.
KFUM Stavanger Volleyball aims to provide people with disabilities with a higher quality of life, better health, the opportunity to achieve their goals, and more social contact.
ERLING TRONDSEN, KFUM STAVANGER VOLLEYBALL
Athletes experience mastery on the sports arena, and opportunities for mastery are also created outside of sports. The focus is on increased inclusion and participation in para-volley, with more people with disabilities regularly participating in activities together. Erling Trondsen is one of the key figures behind the sitting volleyball team in Stavanger and has won a total of 20 medals in the Paralympic Games in swimming, including 13 gold medals.
Stavanger 2025
The European Championship in Stavanger will take place from May 19 to 25, 2025, coinciding with the jubilee year of the Stavanger municipality. “KFUM Stavanger Volleyball and the Norwegian Volleyball Federation are doing an impressive job of including people in social and physical activities. By hosting the European Sitting Volleyball Championship in Stavanger, the commitment to including people with disabilities in sports will be strengthened,” praises Mayor Kari Nessa Nordtun.
The local volleyball community makes an impressive effort to include people with disabilities in sports, inspiring other sports communities.
KARI NESSA NORDTUN, MAYOR OF STAVANGER MUNICIPALITY
“The European Championship will inspire more people to join, and, not least, give other clubs and sports the opportunity to learn and establish/develop similar offerings,” she continues.
Experiences from the European Championship in Italy
The purpose of being present in Italy, beyond signing the contract, was also to promote the event so that as many people as possible from Para Volley Europe and athletes with family and friends would travel to Stavanger in 2025.
The Norwegian delegation met with representatives from Para Volley Europe, where the contract was signed by KFUM, PVE, and NVBF. In addition to the signing and meeting with PVE, the delegation participated in PVE strategy meetings and the general assembly, where the Norwegian Volleyball Federation proudly presented the European Championship in 2025.
“This will be the biggest development project for Para Volley Europe in the next two years. We look forward to working with the Norwegian Volleyball Federation and KFUM Stavanger to create a fantastic event in Stavanger 2025.”
BRANKO MIHARKO, PRESIDENT OF PARA VOLLEY EUROPE
After the general assembly, parts of the delegation headed home, while some stayed for the opening ceremony, promotion, skill development, and the start of the championship.
Norwegian Volleyball Federation
Norway has a good international reputation in volleyball, with reigning Olympic champions in beach volleyball, Anders Mol and Christian Sørum. The Norwegian Volleyball Federation supports elite athletes but also has a strong focus on grassroots sports and development for children and youth. The NVBF has been essential in the effort to bring the European Championship to Norway and Stavanger, with para-sports being one of its four strategic focus areas. The NVBF wants volleyball to be a sport for everyone, with equal opportunities to participate and compete.
“It’s very exciting and fun that we have secured the para-European Championship for Norway! With us, we have the skilled and experienced team from KFUM Stavanger, and together we take an even greater responsibility to create sports and volleyball joy for everyone.”
GURO RØEN, SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE NORWEGIAN VOLLEYBALL FEDERATION
“As the new secretary-general, I have already understood that there is a great commitment to volleyball, events, and especially to sitting volleyball in Stavanger, so I am confident that we will once again experience the magic of Stavanger that the volleyball family is so familiar with,” says Guro Røen in the Norwegian Volleyball Federation.
Good synergies – Sports, tourism, and social inclusion.
Region Stavanger has a mandate to attract more visitors to the region across various segments and has assisted the community in the application process. “Sports events are an important segment that often creates positive ripple effects, and the European Sitting Volleyball Championship is a good example of this. It is beneficial for tourism, sports, and social inclusion. The championship demonstrates how events can contribute to highlighting important issues such as social inclusion in sports,” says Anette Larsen in Region Stavanger
The European Championship in 2025 is positive for both tourism, local sports, and social inclusion, and it is further evidence of a diverse local commitment and organizer competence in our region.
ANETTE LARSEN BOGNØ, DIRECTOR OF EVENTS, REGION STAVANGER
PVE 2025 EUROPEAN SITTING VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP MEN & WOMEN
When: 19 -25 May 2025.
Where: Stavanger Sports Hall, Siddis Center.
Organisers: KFUM Stavanger Volleyball, Norwegian Volleyball Federation & Para Volley Europe.
The Norwegian Volleyball Federation will use the 2025 championship to achieve several of its goals, including:
- Anchoring the focus on sitting volleyball in the action plan in future periods.
- Encouraging the initiation of sitting volleyball in NVBF’s member clubs.
- Establishing robust sitting volleyball environments in regional/geographical areas and having established national teams for women and men by 2025.
Press release from Para Volley Europe:
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