Good news was received by the Polish national team regarding the condition of middle blocker Bartłomiej Lemański, who suffered an injury in the very first match of the Poles at the Hubert Jerzy Wagner Memorial in Krakow. Examinations have ruled out a fracture, and head coach Nikola Grbić hopes the volleyball player will return to training as early as next week.
Lemański was injured in the first set during Poland's 3:2 victory over Slovenia. At a score of 5:7, the middle blocker landed awkwardly after a block and twisted his right ankle. He left the court and was immediately attended to by the medical staff. Initially, ice was applied to the injured area, after which Lemański returned to the locker room accompanied by the team doctor. He later returned to the hall but did not appear in the game again.
Immediately after the match, Grbić revealed that a positive sign was the absence of swelling. On Saturday, Lemański underwent examinations in Krakow, which ruled out a fracture. According to information from "Przegląd Sportowy", the initial diagnosis did not show serious damage either, although additional examinations are planned.
"It didn't look serious from the very beginning, but sometimes it only seems that way. The important thing is that we already have the results and they are good. There is no fracture, and that is the most important thing," commented Nikola Grbić, quoted bySport.pl.
The Polish coach hopes Lemański will be able to rejoin the training process as early as next week, when the national team will gather for a short camp in Spała. According toSport.pl, it is not excluded that initially the 217-centimeter middle blocker will work with limited load, as the main goal of the staff is not to risk complicating his condition immediately before the European Championship.
Lemański will certainly not appear on the court again during the Wagner Memorial. Grbić made this decision even before the final results of the examinations, so as not to take unnecessary risks. Thus, the middle blocker missed the match against the USA and will not be used against France either.
Currently, Polish media do not consider Lemański's participation in EuroVolley to be at risk. "Przegląd Sportowy" also emphasizes that the available results do not point to a scenario that would rule him out of the European Championship, but the final picture will become even clearer after subsequent diagnostics and the ankle's reaction during recovery.
The condition of the 31-year-old middle blocker is particularly important for Nikola Grbić due to Poland's problems in this position this season. Mateusz Bieniek and Norbert Huber did not join the national team for health reasons, and Jakub Kochanowski underwent knee surgery that ruled him out of contention for the European Championship. In Lemański's absence at the Memorial, Grbić has Szymon Jakubiszak, Jakub Nowak, and Jakub Majchrzak as middle blockers.
Lemański, along with Jakubiszak, established himself as Poland's main pair of middle blockers this season after returning to the national team after a long absence. Therefore, the results of the examinations are important news for the Poles before EuroVolley, where they will be among Bulgaria's opponents in the group stage in Sofia.
Before the European Championship, Poland has one more test match – against Finland on September 5 in Gdańsk. It is the training camp in Spała before this match that should show how far Lemański's recovery has progressed and whether he can already return to normal loads.

photo: Nikolay Varadinov