Zurich, Switzerland, May 5, 2015 - The six coaches of the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship are relishing a highly competitive week of volleyball in Zurich following the opening press conference earlier today.
Rexona-Ades coach Bernardo Rezende said that the level is extremely high this year. “It is a very tough group of teams, we have the European Champions, and the host side are extremely strong, too.
“It will be special because this is the last ever competition for our setter, Fofao, and it will be a great tournament for our young players, who are not starters in the international team yet. It is a tough pool so our first goal is to get into the second round.”
Avital Selinger of Volero Zurich is confident despite only having had five weeks to prepare his team.
“It is not a lot of time, but we are a strong team who play at a high level, our preparation has been great, and we are focused and full of confidence,” he said. “We will take it every match at a time, and our first goal is to survive the pool. We can’t underestimate anybody. I hope the home crowd can be a boost.”
Giovanni Caprara, who led Eczacibasi VitrA Istanbul to the European Champions League earlier in the season, has been in Zurich so frequently with his team recently that he said “it is like my house.
“We are very happy to be here and play at this important tournament. It is a great level, and it will be very difficult, but we do our best to get through. It is also great to see Fofao at her last tournament, because she is the best setter of all time.”
Kumi Nakada, coach of Hisamitsu Springs, was also happy to be in Zurich.
“We are so honoured to come here again this year after coming last season, and all the players are very happy. All the teams here have taller and more powerful players than us. Japanese teams always have to think a lot to beat others. But we have a great spirit, and want to win.”
Dinamo Krasnodar coach Konstantin Ushakov added: “We have some famous players in our team, but the main thing is to have a good team. We are trying to be at the top level. We want to show our best play here, and fight every match.”
Marcos Kwiek, the coach of Dominican Republic outfit Mirador, meanwhile, sees the week as a learning experience for his young squad.
“We have quite a few national team players on the side, but we do not have professional teams in the Dominican Republic, so we are looking to develop and grow players into the national team. We have players aged just 14 here, but they want to play at a good level, and tournaments like this can help them grown into internationals.”