Dear Mr. Hecht, [President of the German Volleyball Federation]
Dear Mr. Jagerhofer, [CEO Beach Major GmbH]
Dear players, referees, assistants and staff,
Members of Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to Hamburg, welcome to the official opening of the "FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships 2019"!

For the next ten days, Hamburg is the world capital of beach volleyball: 96 teams from 38 nations will be competing in more than 200 matches for the title "World Champion" - and for a ticket to the Olympic Games in Tokyo next year.

1,500 tons of sand have been transported to the Rothenbaum stadium. Many helpers have been at work in the past few days to create the best possible conditions for the players and spectators.

Everything is ready, even the weather forecast looks promising. Along with one hundred thousand fans at the stadium and millions of viewers all over the world, Hamburg is looking forward to exciting World Championships!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Hamburg is an Active City. More than half a million citizens are members in one of more than 800 sports clubs.

Sports and other forms of exercise create a positive energy in all areas of our life: for one's own health, for solidarity and integration in our society across all social boundaries, and for the overall development of our city.

Beach volleyball has become very popular in our city for five reasons:

• First: It can be played in many places. There are many public fields in our city including the Elbe river beach, the most beautiful playing field in Hamburg.
• Second: We have the best possible conditions for instruction and training. For more than fifteen years, Hamburg has been the national sports base of the German Volleyball Federation. More than half of our national team players train in Hamburg.
• Reasons three and four are Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst. The victories of these two athletes from Hamburg - at the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio and at the World Championships 2017 in Vienna - inspired the entire city and made many people in Hamburg interested in beach volleyball even more.
• And finally: Beach volleyball has a great spirit and an atmosphere that is truly unique. We were lucky that the International Volleyball Federation chose Hamburg to host tournaments of the Major Series three times in a row. That created a big excitement for this sport.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Hamburg is a cosmopolitan and liberal metropolis with people from more than 180 countries. We are proud of this diversity and of the colourful life our city has to offer.

It is great to see that athletes from nearly 40 nations have come to Hamburg and that today we are celebrating the start of the "Beach Volleyball World Championships 2019".

Dear ball boys and girls, many thanks for creating a very special atmosphere for this reception with the national flags.

In the name of the Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, I would like to thank the referees, the trainers and the many helpers for ensuring a smooth and professional flow of events in the next ten days.

To all the teams: I wish you good luck and success!

And now: Let the "FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships Hamburg 2019" begin!

Es gilt das gesprochene Wort.