Manhattan Beach is probably most famous for its beach volleyball and the grand daddy of beach volleyball tournaments, the Manhattan Beach Open. Since 1960 this tournament, which started as an amateur event and is now part of the professional volleyball player's tour, has been a popular Summertime activity. The Manhattan Beach Open is the only professional volleyball tournament in which amateurs are able to "place into" the event through pre-qualifying rounds. Many local residents have participated in the tournament and some have won the tournament including U.S. Olympic Silver Medalist, Mike Dodd. Winners of the tournament are memorialized with bronze volleyball-shaped plaques in the "Volleyball Walk of Fame" which spans the length of the Manhattan Beach Pier. For more information please visit the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) website.
