DATE: Friday, June 6, 1997                  TAG: 9706050223

SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON   PAGE: 11   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   43 lines

EVENT, WITH 258 TEAMS, IS LARGEST IN COUNTRY

In just four years, Dick Whalen, Bob Gerling and their supportive crew have turned what seemed like little more than a recreational idea into a full-fledged sporting spectacular - the North American Sand Soccer Championships.

While the ``championships'' are still basically participatory recreation, nobody can argue that this weekend's fourth annual affair has gotten to be quite grand.

Organizers have grown the tournament from 28 teams to 258 teams - making it the largest such event in the country. It has gone from a simple whistle start, to an event that will be kicked off when King Neptune slides down a wire from the roof of an Oceanfront hotel to the sand below.

No longer do organizers have to scrape to get sponsorships. International soccer supplier Umbro jumped on board last year and this year, the event is affiliated with the Pro Beach Sand Soccer Tour - a 15-country sweep where they play sand soccer in front of crowds of better than 5,000.

U.S. team member Zak Ibsen will be in town for this weekend's event to help give the tournament even more credibility.

Sand soccer teams consist of five players with free substitution. The games consists of two 15-minute halves.

There are divisions for youth, adult and corporate coed (where sponsors usually field the better teams). Several college teams will also participate.

This year's event will also feature a soccer fashion show, clinics given by Ibsen and a skills competition for various age groups.

But possibly more important than the participation is what tournament does for the community.

The event has become the largest fund raiser for the Hampton Roads Soccer Council - a non-profit organization currently building a field complex at Princess Anne Park.

Competition this year will be held from First through Ninth streets from 8:30 a.m. to sunset on Saturday, resuming at 8:30 a.m. Sunday and continuing through afternoon awards. As part of the weekend, the Hampton Roads Piranhas USISL women's pro team will take on the Philadelphia Frenzy at 7 p.m. Saturday night at Lake Taylor. KEYWORDS: SAND SOCCER

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu