The Bulgarian U17 men's national team continues its preparation for the Balkan Championship in Albania, which will take place from August 4 to 8.
After a two-week camp in Burgas starting July 13, Ivan Stanev's selection is now preparing in Stara Zagora. There, the young nationals will play two friendly matches against Romania – tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.
In a conversation with VolleyWeek, head coach Ivan Stanev revealed that the initial expanded squad of 20 players has already been reduced to 16. After the control matches, the final selection of 14 volleyball players who will represent Bulgaria at the Balkan Championship is pending.
From the expanded squad, Jayson Barutov, Aleksandar Ivanov, Yavor Nedelchev, and Atila Kadir Osmanoglu have been released for now. However, the four remain in the expanded group for the World Championship and continue to train with their clubs.
After the Balkan Championship, attention will turn to the World Championship in Qatar, which will be held from August 19 to 29. This will be the second edition of the championship, after the first took place in Sofia in August 2024.
The staff's concerns before departing for Qatar are related not so much to the harsh climatic conditions and high temperatures, but rather to the situation in the region.
After the release of the four players, the following 16 volleyball players remain in the Bulgaria U17 camp:
Setters:
Konstantin Tsanev (Cherno More)
Emiliyan Dinchev (VASK)
Outside Hitters:
Aleksandar Nestorov (Levski)
Deyan Angelov (VASK)
Kayio Pavlov (VASK)
Ivan Antonov (Montana)
Kaloyan Stefanov (CSKA)
Sali Sezgin (Isperih)
Middle Blockers:
Krastin Ilov (CSKA)
Ivan Kamenov (VASK)
Mariyan Georgiev (Slavia)
Ivan Velichkov (Minyor)
Miroslav Dakov (CSKA)
Opposite Hitter:
Denislav Kirov (VASK)
Libero:
Ivaylo Donev (CSKA)
Dean Lakov (Levski)