April 29, 2026.- In a full circle moment, France has become one of the first countries to establish an FIVB International Centre of Excellence under the FIVB Strategic Vision 2032 and within the FIVB’s newly launched global ICoE Framework. It was French volleyball that co-founded the FIVB itself. That history now continues in Toulouse, where this week the International Centre of Excellence was formally inaugurated and a landmark MoU signed between the FIVB, FFVolley and the Occitanie Region.
The new Centre national beach-volley de la FFvolley is located within the world-renowned CREPS Toulouse, a major sports campus that brings together elite training, education and scientific expertise. The Centre itself contains an indoor beach volleyball hall co-financed by the Occitanie Region, physical conditioning and medical and physiotherapy facilities, positioning it among Europe’s premier hubs for volleyball development and competition preparation. The inauguration was formalised by Olympic Champion, three-time Olympian and President of CREPS Toulouse, Sandra Forgues.
The centre is designed to give National Federations access to elite preparation environments, serving not only French athletes but equally teams across the Global Volleyball Movement travelling to Europe for high performance training, including French-speaking African National Federations. In doing so, the Centre provides a wider community of nations with more opportunities to access world-class facilities and expertise. National Federations interested in making use of the centre can apply through the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment platform.
The MoU was signed at the new Centre this week by FIVB President Fabio Azevedo, FFVolley President Éric Tanguy, and Kamel Chibli, Vice President of the Occitanie Region – in the presence of volleyball and beach volleyball athletes from the French national teams who were training at the facility.
The FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme has also played a key role in supporting volleyball development in France, including ongoing coach support for beach volleyball national teams (Senior Men, Senior Women, Youth) and volleyball national teams (Senior Women).
Through initiatives like these, the FIVB Strategic Vision 2032 comes to life – bringing the Global Volleyball Movement closer, Together as One, empowering stakeholders at every level and ensuring the sport continues to grow in a way that is accessible, understandable and affordable.
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