World Grand Prix

World Grand Prix may refer to:

Grand Prix

Grand Prix (French pronunciation: ​[ɡʁɑ̃pʁi], meaning Grand Prize; plural Grands Prix) may refer to:

Sports competitions

FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix

The FIVB World Grand Prix is a women's volleyball competition. Created in 1993, the tournament is annual. The men's version of the competition is called World League. This event should not be confused with the other international volleyball competitions, the World Championship, the World Cup and the World Grand Champions Cup.

History

Origins

World Grand Prix was created in 1993 as part of the FIVB's marketing strategy to promote the sport of volleyball by establishing annual international competitions. It was modelled after the World League, a successful event for men that had been introduced three years before.

The Grand Prix made women's volleyball very popular in East Asia; the lack of interest on the part of the audience is nevertheless still significant throughout the world. Today (2004), the competition is maintained mainly with the support of Asian investors.

The budget for prize money has been growing steadily since 1993, but at a rather slow pace. The figures have reached $1.295 million in 2004 - meager when compared to the World League's $13 million.

World League

World League may refer to:

Fédération Internationale de Volleyball

The Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (English: International Volleyball Federation), commonly known by the acronym FIVB, is the international governing body for the sports of indoor, beach and grass volleyball. Its headquarters are located in Lausanne, Switzerland and its current president is Ary Graça.

History

The FIVB was founded in France in April 1947. In the late 1940s, some of the European national federations began to address the issue of creating an international governing body for the sport of volleyball. Initial discussions eventually lead to the installation of a Constitutive Congress in 1947. Fourteen national federations representing five different continents attended the meetings where, between April 18 and 20, the entity was officially formed, having Frenchman Paul Libaud as first president.

One of the main goals of the 1947 Congress was achieved two years later with the establishment of the first international major volleyball event, the World Championship. In 1952, a women's version of the tournament was also introduced.