The Bulgarian national U17 volleyball team departs tomorrow for Doha, where the World Championship will be held from August 19 to 29. Head coach Ivan Stanev has already finalized the 14 volleyball players, and Bulgaria's updated schedule for the group stage is also clear.
Compared to the squad that won the Balkan Championship just days ago, Stanev is making one change. The main opposite hitter, Veli Sezgin, who missed the tournament due to a shoulder problem, returns to the team. Setter Konstantin Tsanev is dropped from the squad.
"Veli Sezgin is my main opposite hitter. His shoulder hurt, and I didn't take him to the Balkan Championship. There was no way I could react in one day, so I went with three setters, just to have a full squad. When we returned, he had already recovered in Sofia, his shoulder is better. I released a setter, and we remain 14," Stanev explained to us.
Bulgaria's squad for the U17 World Championship
| No. | Volleyball Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | Emilian Dinchev |
| 2 | Krastin Ilov |
| 3 | Kaloyan Stefanov |
| 4 | Deyan Angelov |
| 5 | Kayo Pavlov |
| 6 | Devan Lakov |
| 7 | Ivaylo Donev |
| 8 | Mariyan Georgiev |
| 9 | Milko Bagdasarov |
| 10 | Preslav Popov |
| 11 | Danil Richiu |
| 12 | Ivan Velichkov |
| 13 | Denislav Kirov |
| 14 | Veli Sezgin |
The only change from the championship squad from the Balkan Championship is that the recovered Veli Sezgin takes the place of Konstantin Tsanev. Thus, Stanev will once again have his main opposite for the most important competition for this age group. Bulgaria's schedule is now clear. After the redraw, one big unknown remained – when Bulgaria would play against its new opponents. The schedule has now been updated and confirmed Stanev's words that the first match will be against Egypt. Bulgaria begins its participation on August 20 against Egypt, a day later they face Spain, and on August 24 they conclude the group stage against Turkey. All three matches start at 5:00 PM local time in Doha.
| Date | Match | Time |
|---|---|---|
| August 20 | Egypt – Bulgaria | 17:00 |
| August 21 | Spain – Bulgaria | 17:00 |
| August 24 | Bulgaria – Turkey | 17:00 |
The schedule places Bulgaria in two consecutive matches right at the beginning – against Egypt and Spain on August 20 and 21. After that, the national team will have two days without a match before the last group stage game against Turkey. Against Turkey again. The match against Turkey on August 24 attracts particular attention. The two teams played twice just days ago at the Balkan Championship. In the group stage, Turkey defeated Bulgaria 3:2 (25:19, 25:21, 16:25, 21:25, 15:11), but our national team took revenge in the most important match – the final, won 3:2 (25:22, 22:25, 25:18, 14:25, 15:7). Tomorrow, Ivan Stanev's team heads to Doha, and the first test is Egypt on August 20.
