SPORTS – FIVB 2017 | China volleyball team coach hopes to perform better
Executive coach of the China Women’s National Volleyball Team, An Jiajie, is hoping that the team’s young players will achieve a breakthrough in the rankings of this year’s FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix Macau, which will be held from July 14 to July 16 at Macau Forum.
With several new players in the team, the Chinese team will gain another experience in international competitions from the tournament.
“Many national teams used young players this year and so has our team. I hope that they can be more confident in the Macau leg competitions and our team can achieve a breakthrough in the rankings,” An told the press, who arrived along with the team from Shanghai yesterday at 5 p.m.
The executive coach was speaking on the sidelines of Galaxy Entertainment Group’s welcome reception for the team.
This year, teams from Turkey, Italy and the United States also consist of younger athletes, and the Chinese coach pledged to further train younger players to compete in Macau.
“We will keep using these young people in Macau,” he said, adding that they are more confident with their young team members.
“Hopefully it follows our plan, which is that the young teammates can express themselves, and hopefully that, through this completion, our team’s level [of ability] can be trained,” An continued.
With six matches, the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix Macau 2017 will see China play against Italy on the first day, then against Turkey on the second day, and the U.S. on the last day.
An referenced one team member, Zhang Changnin, who is currently injured, and revealed that she is recovering and hoped that she could join the upcoming three-day competition.
Zhang, 21, was selected for the National Women’s Volleyball Team in 2014 and won the silver medal in the 2014 World Women’s Championship, and gold medal in the 2015 Asian Women’s Championship.
China’s national team won the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix Macau 2016, which saw the team renew the title it first won in 2014.
The three-day event is organized by the Sports Bureau and the Volleyball Association of Macau, China, and presented by Galaxy Entertainment Group. LV
United States team arrives in Macau
In addition to the Chinese volleyball Team, team USA, the winners of the Kunshan leg, arrived in the territory yesterday to prepare for the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix Macau 2017. Fresh from defeating Russia, Italy and China to win the Kunshan leg last weekend, Team USA aim to continue their winning streak in the city where they were crowned champions of the FIVB WGP Finals in 2011. Comprising mostly new players, their lineup includes only two players that participated in last year’s Rio Olympics – Carli Lloyd and Kelly Murphy. The U.S. will play China in the anticipated final match of the Macau leg on Sunday, which will be a rematch of last weekend’s finale in Kunshan.
