Captains, coaches and organisers lined up at the official press conference for the Opole group of the 2017 FIVB Men's Club World Championship.
Opole, Poland, December 11, 2017 - Setting the tone for the ultimate volleyball club competition, the coaches and captains of the participating teams in Pool A of the 2017 FIVB Volleyball Men's Club World Championship got together with organisers in the official press conference of the competition here today.
The competition kicks off on Tuesday with eight teams vying for top honours. Pool play is in the Polish cities of Opole and Lodz, with the last four gathering in Krakow over the weekend for the semifinals and finals.
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Latest VideosFacebookTwitterInstagramMedia GuidesHere's what they had to say:
Arkadiusz Wisniewski, Mayor of Opole: "It is a great honour for us to have a possibility of hosting such a great event. What's more, this year we’re celebrating the 800th anniversary of our city so it will be a great chance to promote that. I am sure everybody will feel great in Opole."
Slobodan Milosevic, FIVB Event Director: "I would like to thank Opole and the organizers for making this big event. Everything is prepared great, as always in Poland. Every tournament here is excellent. We have the best teams, the best players, now we just have to promote our volleyball."
Tomasz Cieslik, organiser, President of Professional Sports Events company: "It is a great satisfaction to be an organiser of such a great event and meet you today. Our preparations lasted for almost a year and I am sure we'll be satisfied in a week. I am also very happy we cooperated with Krzysztof Ignaczak, our former national player, who visited all eight clubs and made some great movies."
Giampaolo Medei, Cucine Lube Civitanova coach: "I am happy I can be here to play against the best teams of the world. We know we also have a good team, so we hope to do our best."
Dragan Stankovic, Cucine Lube Civitanova captain: "It's great that the event is in Poland. We can count on a good organization for sure. It is also a great honour for us. Now we want to play in semifinal, we will think later what we can do more."
Marcelo Mendez, Sada Cruzeiro Volei coach: "I am happy we're here and we are going to play against the best. I wish good luck to all of you."
Filipe Ferraz, Sada Cruzeiro Volei captain: "It is very important for me to be here and I am sure we’ll do our best. I hope we'll go to the final."
The four coaches of the teams in Opole, left to right: Giampaolo Medei (Cucine Lube Civitanova), Marcelo Mendez (Sada Cruzeiro Contagem), Mostafa Karkhaneh (Sarmaye Bank), Andrea Gardini (Zaksa Kedzierzyn-Kozle).Mostafa Karkhaneh, Sarmaye Bank coach: "I am happy I can be here with the Iranian team. It is a great honour for us to play with the best teams of the world."
Mehdi Mahdavi, Sarmaye Bank captain: "I am honoured to be here in Poland and hope we can present ourselves as well as possible."
The four captains of the teams in Opole, left to right: Dragan Stankovic (Cucine Lube Civitanova), Filipe Ferraz (Sada Cruzeiro Contagem), Mehdi Mahdavi (Sarmeye Bank), Benjamin Toniutti (Zaksa Kedzierzyn-Kozle).Andrea Gardini, Zaksa Kedzierzyn Kozle coach: "We are proud we can take part in the tournament. This event is a great chance for our team. I am happy that the event is in Poland and I am sure spectators will support us. I hope to play in the semifinal."
Benjamin Toniutti, Zaksa Kedzierzyn-Kozle captain: "I am happy to be here and sure there will be a lot of good, varied volleyball. We have teams from Europe, South America and Asia, so different styles of good volleyball. It will be an interesting experience to take part in it."