Karch Kiraly announced two important additions to the technical staff of the U.S. Men's National Team:Luca Slabe and Javier Weber will be among the collaborators of "Great Karch" in the pursuit of Olympic success at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.The announcement comes on the eve of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Convention, where both Kiraly and Slabe will conduct training sessions for coaches and volleyball professionals.
Slabe returns to USA Volleyball after five successful years as head coach of the NC State women's volleyball team. Prior to that, he worked with Kiraly as an assistant coach for the U.S. Women's National Team from 2018 to 2021. There he played a key role in the team's historic achievements, including three consecutive Volleyball Nations League titles and the gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games - the first in U.S. women's volleyball history.
Slabe was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, playing as an outside hitter for BYU from 2000 to 2003, contributing to the Cougars winning the NCAA Division I-II national collegiate title in 2001. After graduating, he played professionally in Europe before transitioning to coaching in 2008. From 2008 to 2015, Slabe coached four different European men's professional teams and spent two years as head coach of the Slovenian men's national team. From 2015 to 2018, he was also an assistant coach for the BYU men's volleyball team.
Javier Weber was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and returns for his fourth season with the U.S. Men's National Team, having joined in 2022 under coach John Speraw. During his tenure with the team, the U.S. won two silver medals in the Volleyball Nations League and a bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. A former Olympic medalist and setter for Argentina, Weber represented his country at three Olympics, winning a bronze medal in 1988. His remarkable playing career includes participation in five World Championships, as well as significant achievements in professional leagues in Argentina and Italy. With extensive experience as a professional coach, Weber began his coaching career in 2002 with the Brazilian club Unisul. Since then, he has coached various teams at an international level, including Indykpol AZS Olsztyn in Poland, Panathinaikos Athens in Greece, Bolivar Voley in Argentina, and Dinamo Krasnodar in Russia. He was the head coach of the Argentine men's national team from 2009 to 2013, and is currently the head coach of JT Thunders Hiroshima in Japan.
photo:usavolleyball.org