Velasco: Iran to Make History in Volleyball World Championship
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran's National Volleyball Team Coach Julio Velasco said his team is poised to make history in the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in Poland.
The championship will take place across six different cities (Katowice, Lodz, Wroclaw, Gdansk, Bydgoszcz, Krakow) in Poland from August 30 to September 21.
Pool D is arguably the toughest of the four groups with three times champion Italy joined by NORCECA 1, Iran (WR12), France (WR16), NORCECA 4 and Belgium (WR37).
“We want to make history in the competitions. First, we have to qualify for the next round. The US will likely join us in Pool D and it will be a big challenge for us. In my opinion, Pool D is so difficult and I cannot do anything. We will fight in every game to book a berth in the next round,” the 62-year-old coach said in an interview with onet.pl on Tuesday.
Velasco admits that he is wary of threat of Belgium in the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship.
“Belgium is a strong team but we would not be surprised against them. I’ve seen their matches so many times and I found out they have progressed methodically,” he stated.
“Iran has not advanced to the second round in the world championship so far. It’s a difficult task since we have strong teams in our pool. After Iran booked a berth in the next round, we focus on victory in every game but it’s too soon to think about medal,” Velasco added.
