The Division I Board of the National Collegiate Athletic Association has included sand volleyball in the list of emerging sports for women, starting August 2011, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported.
The sport was added to the list at the group’s annual meeting in Atlanta, where opponents tried to vote it off the emerging sports list but failed to receive the 62.5 percent of the vote necessary for removal. The sport, which was featured heavily at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, is different from indoor volleyball because it consists of a two-on-two contest and is played exclusively on a sand court.