Shawnee hosting Olympic athletes in first volleyball showdown

A new volleyball tournament is bringing some of the world’s top athletes to Shawnee for its inaugural competition.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13, the Shawnee Mission Beach Volleyball club will host the inaugural George Brett 4v4 Volleyball Showdown, a competition featuring some of the sport’s most acclaimed athletes.

The event will feature 24 professional athletes spread across six teams as they compete for $250,000 in prizes.

Owning the volleyball club since 2023, Lance Windholz said his hopes were always to organize a big event like this with hopes of bringing out thousands of people.

“To bring another professional sport into the market, I think it’s pretty amazing,” he said.

Top-tier athletes will compete

While the Midwest may not come to mind as a sand-covered, volleyball destination, Windholz said the courts in Shawnee are something to be desired.

“We shipped in sand and built a beach in the middle of the heartland. I mean, that, in and of itself, is just kind of crazy,” he said. “I talk to people who live in California and they’re envious of what we have.”

Some of those envious people from California and beyond will be competing in the event, like Olympic athletes Taylor Crabb, Phil Daulhausser, Nick Lucena, Andy Benesh and Carli Lloyd, among others. They will be divided into six teams, three men and three women’s teams.

In bringing them all to town, Windholz wants people to think of it like a new team arriving.

“It really is like having a new professional team in town, except, with these kind of sports, they’re a little bit more like event-based,” he said.

Organizers are “excited” about the event

The idea for the event formed with Windholz pitched it to Steve Obradovich, an Association of Volleyball Hall of Fame athlete and creator of the Newport Beach Volleyball Tournament in Newport Beach, California.

“He was just trying to grow the sport and help the players that have shaped the sport that he’s been playing his whole life. And it was a big success. And so he was like, ‘I want to do more of these,’” Windholz said.

Being friends with Kansas City Royals legend George Brett, Obradovich started looking at venues to play in Kansas and got put in touch with Windholz.

“We got connected. They checked out our facility. (Obradovich) loved it. He said, ‘This is going to be awesome.’ And so it kind of was just born out of that,” Windholz said.

When Windholz told Beth Ansell, executive director of Visit Shawnee Kansas, about the tournament, she was excited.

“He’s been working on bringing tourism there for a little while now. So when I heard he’s bringing the Olympic athletes and pro volleyball players here, it was just really exciting,” she said.

Volleyball newcomers are welcome

With the event expected to draw crowds of up to 4,000, Windholz said he understands that this might be something new to some attendees, so they added activities to help them engage with the sport.

“When you watch the game, it’s so fast-paced. There’s a ton of action,” he said. “When these men and women get a power kill, it’s like hitting a home run. It’s just a slug fest, like a boxing match, where they’re just throwing bombs back and forth. It’s so much fun to watch.”

If people need a break from the all-day action, the event will also have hands-on experiences, like kids zones, athlete meet-and-greets and “Pros Vs. Joes” demonstrations where attendees can test the might of the athletes competing in the games.

“You get to line up against a pro and see just how good they are and see how fast they move, if you want. They’ll take it easy on you, if you want. But if you say, ‘Show me the heat,’ they’ll do it,” Windholz said.

Hopes are the event will be an annual tradition

The tournament joins other big sports events that Shawnee hosts throughout the year at venues within the city’s so-called “Valley of Champions”, including the KC Ice Arena.

Whether the tournament will become an annual tradition will be determined by how many people attend this one, Windholz said.

“We get one chance to impress these pros, and if we don’t, they’re not going to be excited to come back,” he said.

Knowing how much of a sports city the Kansas City area is, Windholz said it shouldn’t be a problem.

“We’ve got the loudest outdoor venue with Arrowhead (Stadium). We’ve got the Guinness record for loudest indoor venue with Allen Fieldhouse. If we can bring that energy to Sept. 13, these guys are gonna literally be asking, ‘When are we coming back?’” he said.

Tickets are $43.25 and available at this link. All ages are welcome.

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