Beach Volleyball: London summer event cancelled amid failure to secure commercial backing

Beach volleyball (GETTY IMAGES)

Beach volleyball will not return to London this summer after Volleyball England failed to secure enough commercial backing for the women's world tour event in August. Despite sell-out crowds at last year's London Olympics, the organisers fell well short of the funding required.

"We've lost the opportunity to capitalise on London 2012," said Volleyball England president Richard Callicott. "There was too big a funding gap between expenditure and income."

The news comes six months after UK Sport's decision to axe financial support for the indoor, sitting and men's beach volleyball programmes leading into the 2016 Rio Games.