10A • July 8, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com
Miami’s Lucas Roque, left, Portland’s Matthew LaPlante, center, and Washington D.C.’s Chris Dove, right, get their kicks during
the Team USA Footvolley qualifying fi nal.
DANNY MILLER/EO MEDIA GROUP
FOOTVOLLEY FLIES
IN SEASIDE
By Eli Stillman
EO Media Group
While July will bring the
track and fi eld Olympic Trials
to Eugene, in late June Orego-
nians got to witness another
national qualifying competi-
tion in Seaside.
Teams of two came to the
beach and faced off in footvol-
ley tournament play to see who
will represent America later
this year. The hybrid sport that
mixes soccer and beach vol-
leyball will be featured at the
2016 Olympic games in Rio
de Janeiro as a demonstration
event.
On April 7, Brazilian sen-
ator and ambassador of the
sport, Romário Faria, released
a statement saying, “We will
have footvolley during the
Olympics and Paralympics this
year. But please remain calm. It
will be more of a cultural event
and not an offi cial competition.
Nevertheless it will be an ex-
cellent opportunity to present
footvolley to the world.”
Rules for the sport follow
standard beach volleyball fair-
ly closely.
However, unlike volley-
ball, players aren’t allowed to
use their hands or arms. This
is where the soccer infl uence
comes into play, as they put
together combinations using
their legs, chests and heads.
Teams are allowed three touch-
es per possession, and attempt
to get the ball over the net and
DANNY MILLER/EO MEDIA GROUP
Miami’s Lucas Roque makes a kick mid-air during the Team USA Footvolley qualifying fi nal. Team Miami defeated Team Los
Angeles 2-1 and will represent the U.S. footvolley team as a demonstration sport in Rio.
land in their opponents’ bound-
aries.
Each rally for points begins
after one team serves the ball
to the other side by kicking it
off of a mound of sand on the
backline.
Utilizing different parts of
the body to control the ball can
set up more strategic returns for
teammates, as they dive around
the court and try keep the ball
in the air. Instead of spikes, like
in volleyball, the most tactical
hit is called a “shark attack,
where a player goes upside
down in the air to slam the ball
down with their foot.
Footvolley was created in
Rio in response to their na-
tional sport of soccer being
banned on the beaches. Play-
ers would kick around a ball
until police showed up, and
then would start volleying
it over the net to stay out of
trouble.
Eventually, the game
caught on and players start-
ed setting up boundaries and
creating offi cial rules.
Because of the foot skills
and juggling it requires,
most ootvolley players have
a strong background in soc-
cer.
Sergio Menezes, president
of the U.S. Footvolley Asso-
ciation and competitor in the
weekend tournament, said the
organization chose Seaside to
show the sport to the Pacifi c
Northwest. “We’ve never had
any competitions or events
here before and really wanted
to plant the seed,” he said.
Teams for the weekend’s
tournament came from all
across America, including
places like: Miami, Santa Cruz,
California, and even Washing-
ton, D.C., but Menezes’ plan
has already started to take root.
One pair of Oregonians
made the trip to Seaside and
tried out the sport for their
fi rst time. Felyx Tsoi and Matt
LaPlant are former club soc-
cer players at University of
Portland. While still involved
in beach matches and pickup
games, they found out about
footvolley only a week before
and decided to give it a shot.
“The community was great,
but it’s tough playing a new
sport against some top ath-
letes,” said Tsoi.
“Portland is a big soccer
city, but it still has room for the
sport to grow,” said LaPlant,
“We just need more people to
get out playing on the beach.”
The qualifying match
served as the Northwest’s fi rst
taste of footvolley, but with
television coverage and expo-
sure expected from the Olym-
pic hype, the sport is poised to
grow.
Road to Rio: Top footvolley
qualifi ers head to Olympics
EO Media Group
DANNY MILLER/EO MEDIA GROUP
Team Northern California’s Cody Pillion bounces the
ball off his chest during the Team USA Footvolley quali-
fying matches.
Only two female teams
competed in the Team USA
Footvolley qualifying match-
es in Seaside, so the players
rotated partners and tallied the
results for the title of “Queen of
the Court.” In the end, Melony
Poviones of Miami and Leah
Morales of Oakland, Califor-
nia, proved to be the best pair
and will make the trip across
the world for a demonstration
event of the sport at the summer
Olympics in Rio de Janiero.
Both are former collegiate
soccer players but have never
played at this level of compe-
tition.
“There’s really nothing
better than getting to travel
and continue doing what you
love ,” Poviones said.
Six male pairs faced off
over the weekend for the op-
portunity to represent America
in Rio de Janeiro.
While Sergio Menez-
es serves as president of the
U.S. Footvolley Association,
he also was on the winning
team of the beach battle. His
partner, Lucas Roque, is a na-
tive to Brazil and has played
soccer professionally, as well
as with the U.S. indoor team.
“I’ve played many tourna-
ments with big prizes before,”
Roque said after the tourna-
ment. “But this chance …
who doesn’t want to play in
the Olympics?”
DANNY MILLER/EO MEDIA GROUP
Fans react during the Team USA Footvolley qualifying
fi nal. Team Miami defeated Team Los Angeles 2-1 and
will represent the U.S. Footvolley team as a demonstra-
tion sport in Rio.
STAYING FIT IN THE POOL
Instructor Zoe Manhire has ‘a passion for aquatic fi tness’
By Susan Romersa
For Seaside Signal
Following a program of
aquatic therapy can have
some positive effects on your
body’s systems and can en-
hance your mental well-be-
ing at the same time. Aquatic
classes are currently available
several times per week at the
Sunset Empire Pool & Rec-
reation’s warm water pool
taught by instructor Zoe Man-
hire. It is the only warm water
indoor pool in Clatsop Coun-
ty.
Manhire was hired as rec-
reation manager in 1998 by
then-director Mary Blake.
Manhire was introduced to
this warm water therapy when
she injured her knee and de-
veloped arthritis in that knee.
“I was working at the pool
and found that the warm wa-
ter helped me a great deal,”
Manhire said.
She eventually became
certifi ed as an aquatic fi t-
ness professional through the
Aquatic Exercise Association
in Portland; and in 2013, went
on to develop a series of class-
es at the Sunset pool which
include aquatic yoga, Pilates
for aquatic fi tness and ai chi.
Ai chi is a described as a wa-
ter-based total body strength-
ening and relaxation progres-
sion that combines tai chi, qi
gong, and watsu techniques
performed in chest deep water
using a combination of deep
breathing and slow, broad
movements of the arms, legs,
and torso.
Participants began to see
better body tone and strength.
With tai chi and Pilates,
they were developing core
strength, balance, and relax-
ation. Aqua yoga challenges
the body, mind and spirit for
healing and stress relief. “We
can give you modifi cations to
work with each level,” Man-
hire said.
Manhire has worked with
stroke patients who start out
addition,” she says, “we do
have an actual arthritis exer-
cise class for those with lim-
ited mobility.”
Providence Hospital Re-
habilitation Services uses the
warm water pool to work one-
on- one with aquatic physical
therapy patients.
Aqua yoga
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Instructor Susan Manhire leads a class at the Sunset Empire
Park and Recreation Department pool in Seaside.
by holding on to the edge of
the pool and slowly let the
water’s buoyancy guide them
in their movements. It is the
safest form of exercise, she
says. It connects the brain
with the body.
“I have a passion for
aquatic fi tness,” she adds. She
mentions too that children
fi nd the warm water calming.
Manhire says that her son has
attention defi cit hyperactivity
disorder and and sensory is-
sue. Working with him in the
warm water is soothing, and
he feels good when he is done.
The water fi tness classes have
helped many with the chronic
pain of certain conditions. “In
Practicing yoga in warm
water can provide a number of
benefi ts. It acts as a safeguard
against any injuries that will
most likely occur on land. The
buoyancy of water can reduce
your “weight” by about 90
percent, Manhire said, which
reduces stress on joints and
connective tissue.
Water
decreases
the
amount of shock which
is transmitted through the
bones/joints/ligaments
on
land activities, while in chest-
deep water. The movements
of your hands and legs be-
come smoother in water and
therefore your body will not
experience the strain.
Aqua yoga takes place
when water temperature is 29
to 34 degrees C.
This reaction is thought to
lessen pain sensitivity, stimu-
late the immune system, aid
lymphatic drainage, increase
blood circulation and leave
you both physically and men-
tally relaxed.
When you are immersed
up to your neck, only about
15 pounds of compressive
force is exerted on your spine,
hips, and knees. This bene-
fi ts people with degenerative
diseases such as fi bromyal-
gia, ligament instability, car-
tilage breakdown, or obesity.
It helps the lungs get stronger
and improves cardiovascular
health too. Manhire directs
those who would like to re-
search water yoga more thor-
oughly to visit aqua4balance.
com.
For class schedules, visit
sunsetempire.com or call 503-
738-3311.