The event will be the second Beach Wrestling Event that the Virginia Challenge has sponsored; the first was the North American Beach Wrestling Championships in June of 2006.
"The North American Beach Wrestling Championships were a real hit with people that were on the Virginia Beach Oceanfront," said Virginia Challenge Executive Director Frank Lipoli. "We held it in conjunction with the North American Sand Soccer Championships and we had literally thousands of people stopping to watch the wrestling in between the soccer matches."
"It really helped us not only present the new style of Beach Wrestling to regular wrestling fans, it helped us get exposure for the sport of wrestling to non-wrestling fans," said Lipoli.
The Neptune Festival Beach Brawl will again have a side-by-side partner – the 33rd annual Neptune Festival.
The Neptune Festival routinely attracts over 300,000 people to the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.
"This is a great weekend for people to come down to Virginia Beach for a weekend getaway and have some wrestling in their itinerary," said Lipoli.
"Think about it, you can wrestle in front of 300,000 people!" he said.
One thing that the Virginia Challenge launched at the North American Championships is a dual-meet format.
The "Hungry Hungry Hippos," a team comprised mostly of Great Bridge High School wrestlers, won the first Beach Wrestling dual tournament held in the United States.
The format is something Lipoli and the Virginia Challenge will keep and to continue to develop.
"It was so much fun, not just for the fans, but for the kids wrestling too," said Lipoli. "This really helps the event stand out among Beach Wrestling events – we're the first and only tournament to have a dual meet element."
Always a master of the catchphrase, Lipoli's "Beach Brawl Duals" will likely have creative teams like the "Sand Devils and Sandmen" again.
The event, like the North American Championships, will be USA Wrestling sanctioned and competitors must have a valid USA Wrestling Card to compete.
September 30 will be the individual portion of the event, with roped off competition circles dotting the 18th Street shoreline.
The Beach Brawl Duals will hit the sand on October 1.
"What I really like about Beach Wrestling is basically, it's a day at the beach," said Lipoli. "You go out, wrestle a few minutes, and go rinse off in the Atlantic Ocean."
Coupling the event with major functions at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront will continue.
"We really think this is a great way to showcase the sport of wrestling, regardless of the style, to the public," said Lipoli. "We'll have elementary, middle school and high school divisions along with open, military and college divisions, too."
The second Virginia Challenge event continues a trend of the new FILA style of wrestling in the U.S.
This past weekend, Long Island was host to the East Coast National Beach Wrestling Championships and the first U.S. Nationals are set for Florida later in the month.
Registration information and additional information on Beach Wrestling and the Neptune Festival Beach Brawl Wrestling Championships can be found at www.virginiachallenge.org.
W.I.N. Magazine, InterMat and GameDay Magazine will again be media sponsors of the event.
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