Two volleyball players joined the women's national team camp

The Bulgarian women's national team continues its preparation for the European Championship, with two volleyball players joining head coach Marcello Abbondanza's camp to compensate for personnel problems in the squad.
After middle blocker Darina Naneva was released for medical reasons due to inflammation in her lower back, her place in the squad was taken by Maria Krivoshiyska. The 24-year-old middle blocker joins the preparation late due to family problems.
The second change is in the outside hitter position. As already announced, Kalina Veneva dropped out of the squad for the European Championship and will be replaced by Emileta Racheva. The 27-year-old outside hitter has significant international experience, having played with Zeleznicar (Lajkovac) in the Champions League last season and being part of the Bulgarian squad in the Volleyball Nations League.
We remind you that Bulgaria began its preparation with a group of 18 athletes. Nine of them started work on July 20 in Plovdiv, and the remaining national team players subsequently joined the team.
The only control matches before EuroVolley 2026 will be against the Netherlands on August 15 and 16. After them, the national team will travel to the Czech city of Brno, where they will play their Group B matches against the Czech Republic, Serbia, Ukraine, Greece, and Austria.
Initially, both Darina Naneva and Kalina Veneva were included in Marcello Abbondanza's extended squad. Subsequently, however, Naneva dropped out due to injury, and Veneva will not participate in the championship after a decision to recover and prepare for the start of the club season in Italy. Thus, Maria Krivoshiyska and Emileta Racheva get a chance to help Bulgaria in the preparation for the European Championship.

Current squad of Bulgaria for the preparation for the European Championship:

Setters: