Young Slovenians ready for European debut

Ljubljana, Slovenia. The Slovenian national Volleyball teams have travelled to Croatia where they will compete in the first round of the #EuroVolleyU16W and #EuroVolleyU17M qualifiers, which will be running from March 12 to 14 in Zadar. The competition features teams from the Middle European Volleyball Zonal Association (MEVZA). 

The Slovenian girls, who gathered for the first time in the summer of 2020 in Kranjska Gora, and afterwards continued with their preparations in Maribor, will face Croatia and Austria in the group stage of the competition, followed by clashes with the national teams coming from Pool B, which features Hungary, the Czech Republic and Israel. 

“We are all aware that the results of this season’s competitions will be largely affected by the situation. The absence of training and competition process has an even greater impact on younger players, and it is a big question for all of us how they will react after such a long break. Nevertheless, we are satisfied with the current situation. We have some extraordinary individuals but above all a team that is ready to work hard. We will be grateful for all the experience the girls will get, for every minute spent on the court, and for the privilege of being able to attend a championship after all. I believe our players are aware that they are capable of delivering high-level performances and we can aim for the highest places in the final standing,” commented the head coach Živa Cof.

Slovenia’s U16 team will meet Austria on Friday morning, followed by the match against hosts Croatia in the evening. 

The roster includes the following players: Adriana Vukojevic (OK Lubnik Škofja Loka); Lira Pukl Verdel (OK Nova KBM Branik); Maja Lebic (SIP Šempeter); Masa Pucelj; Tara Filipic (both ŠD Flip Flop); Eva Kneževic (OK Bistrica); Mija Šiftar, Nadja Gojkovic; Tia Hotic (all OD Vital Ljubljana); Nina Rakar (ŽOK Puconci), Saša Damjanovic (OK Gorica); Urška Sevcnikar (ŽOK Kajuh Šoštanj).

The Slovenian men’s U17 team will open the qualifications with a match against Slovakia on Friday. The head coach Iztok Kšela says he is unable to make any kind of predictions: “We chose the national team a year ago, given the potential at the time. Some players have since progressed, while others unfortunately have not. During each training session, we still have to deal with technical elements, but because some players were not included in the training process for such a long time, that is normal. We did the most we could in the preparation period and things look very good. We have two more days to prepare. Physically and technically, I can say that we are ready, but we will see where this will take us,” said Kšela.

Slovenia’s roster for the competition in Zadar includes the following names: Gregor Frece; Miha Okorn (both OK Kamnik), Jošt Purgar (ŠD Brezovica); Miha Kosanc; Matevž Pevc Karadža (both Ljubljana Volley); Jakob Podbregar Špes (OK Braslov?e); Vid Suhodolnik; Nick Legen; Urban Rajnar (all ŠK Pomurje Deset); Jurij Oman (OK Crnuce); Nejc Najdic (OK Merkur Maribor); Luka Marovt (OK Braslov?e).

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News:
CEV – European Volleyball
OZS – Volleyball Federation of Slovenia