Big money offered at Saturday Fortune Open VB Tournament

By Ranjan Anandappa

VOLLEYBALL: A sum of Rs. 300,000 will be in the offering for the winners of the Saturday Fortune Open Volleyball Tournament conducted by the Gampaha Siyane Tharu VC and sponsored by the Development Lottery when it gets underway on November 25 at the TC Grounds Gampaha.

The tournament is open for men and women and the preliminary round matches is scheduled to be worked out on November 25 and 1 and 2 of December 2007. The final will take place on December 8 under floodlights at Gampaha.

The winners of the men's category will receive a sum of Rs. 75,000 and the Lionel Gunawardena memorial shield while the teams that secure the 2nd, 3rd and 4th places will receive Rs. 50,000, Rs. 25,000 and Rs. 10,000 respectively.

The champion women's team will be presented with a cash award of Rs. 50,000. The teams placed 2nd,3rd and 4th will be rewarded with Rs. 30,000, Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 10,000 respectively.

There will be cash awards for the Best Player (Men and women) and also for the players with special skills. For the first time in the country's volleyball history financial assistance will be also provided for one year for the two winning teams (Men and women) to enhance their performance.

At a press briefing held in connection with the event the Chairman of the National Lottery's Board, Sarana Gunawardena said that the tournament was organised by the NLB which has helped to uplift the standard of the common man in the rural areas, considering the contribution rendered by the villagers.