We met up with Rasmus Jonsson to hear more about SummerSmash. What were the reasons for choosing Halmstad to host the event? How has the event developed over the years? What is new this year?... See the whole interview below. We are looking forward to a lovely summer at Tylösand with lots going on!
Why Halmstad was chosen for SummerSmash?
“The choice was easy! Tylösand is Sweden’s best beach. That’s why we chose Halmstad and Tylösand to create Sweden’s largest beach volleyball event.”
Halmstad’s unique contribution to the event?
“Halmstad is a fantastic, summer city. This and beach volleyball is a match made in heaven!”
Sports besides beach volleyball?
“We have lots of ‘give it a go’ activities – skateboard, slackline and beach gymnastics for example.”
Tips for visitors interested in SummerSmash?
“Entry to the event is free throughout the SummerSmash festival and the Swedish beach volleyball championships! You can be active messing around with beach volleyball, testing out skateboarding, exercising on the beach, etc. While Sweden’s volleyball elite play, you can also choose to chill out lying in a hammock beneath a centre-court palm tree, enjoying good music and a cold drink. We promise that you will love the exotic, summer feeling!”
How long the event has been going and plans for the future?
“We’ve held SummerSmash since 2013. The event is growing year on year. Last year was the first that we arranged Swedish championship beach volleyball week. We invested heavily in the arena then. In the future, it would be good to bring a world tour event to Tylösand and to develop the music side even more.”
Innovations for visitors in 2019?
“The Swedish championships will be bigger than ever, with more classes. BeachvolleyFesten, our amateur competition for 6-a-side teams in fancy dress, will equally be rather magical with 1,500 to 2,000 players on 27 July. We’re also making a major investment on the food front. Visitors will notice this.”
Sustainability?
“For us, sustainability is an important issue and permeates every project we carry out. What we do is inherently close to nature and our ‘leave nothing but footprints’ slogan is of utmost importance in our organisation. Our sustainability plan is based on ecological sustainability, social sustainability and economic sustainability. Nonetheless, in practice, each project we carry out is a little different. For SummerSmash in Tylösand, we are focusing more on the first of these (i.e. ecological sustainability) by careful management of nature’s resources. One concrete example is the position we have taken on what we choose to buy in and serve and how we are to reduce consumption and waste. This year, we’re highlighting more vegetarian options on the menu and striving to use locally produced ingredients. Of course, the meat we serve will be Swedish. Zero waste is, for us, a goal that is still in the future. However, we will be doing what we can to limit our waste by throwing away less food, excluding single-use plastic items and training our personnel in sorting at source.”
Anything else?
“That you can get a foretaste of SummerSmash as early as 6 June when we’re opening The Hangout, our beach bar at Tylebäck. Here, everyone can play beach volleyball free on one of our 6 courts throughout the summer up until 25 August and enjoy Tylösand’s nicest chillax station with its outdoor refreshments area. The summer feeling reaches its peak when you have palms, hammocks, swings and really good food.”
This summer’s schedule (2019)
6 June – 25 August The Hangout (play free on our 6 beach volleyball courts; exotic beach bar)
20 July – 4 August SummerSmash Festival & Swedish championship beach volleyball
20 – 21 July North European championship for young people (16 and 18 year olds)
23 July Crown Beach Classic, ladies’ exhibition games for the Nordic countries’ best players
24 July Crown Beach Classic, ladies’ exhibition games for the Nordic countries’ best players
27 July BeachvolleyFesten, crazy atmosphere with a competition for 6-a-side teams in fancy dress
28 July – 4 August Swedish beach volleyball championships
3 August Swedish championship beach volleyball finals – men’s and ladies’
More information about SummerSmash: www.summersmash.se
Check the day-by-day schedule: www.summersmash.se/schema
More information about The Hangout: www.beachtravelshangout.se
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