Bulgaria also has a presence at the African Women's Volleyball Championship, which is taking place in Nairobi, Kenya. Our most authoritative international referee, Ivaylo Ivanov, was the first referee for the match between Cameroon and Ghana on the first day of the championship.
Cameroon started their participation with a convincing 3:0 victory (25:16, 25:20, 25:14). The match was played on August 25th at the "Kasarani Arena" in Nairobi and was part of Group C. The Cameroonians controlled the match from start to finish, with Ghana offering the most serious resistance in the second set.
For Ivanov, participation in the championship continues today. The Bulgarian referee has been assigned to the Egypt – Senegal match. The information about both appointments was confirmed to VolleyWeek by Ivaylo Ivanov.
The appointments are also related to the high stakes of the African Championship. Ivanov revealed to VolleyWeek that due to the fact that this is also an Olympic qualification, neutral referees have been sent to the championship.
The Bulgarian is in Kenya along with Italian international referee Andrea Puecher.
Ivaylo Ivanov is among the most established Bulgarian volleyball referees on the international stage. He was among the referees at the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024, where he received appointments for key matches in the tournament.
Today's Egypt – Senegal will be Ivanov's second consecutive appointment at the African Championship. Egypt started their participation with a convincing 3:0 victory (25:3, 25:15, 25:15) over Burkina Faso, while Senegal lost their first match to Uganda.