Viden Natsev is one of the young volleyball players with Bulgarian roots who are already achieving serious success with the French team. The world and European champion in junior categories left Bulgaria at just 14 years old, and the reasons behind this decision are shared by his father, Viden Natsev, in an interview with bTV Sports.
According to him, the turning point for the family was related to the so-called "development fee," today known as the "registration fee." When Viden was 14, the family learned that if the child wanted to change clubs, 5000 leva had to be paid.
That's when they started exploring opportunities outside Bulgaria. The family received a detailed analysis from the French Volleyball Federation regarding the young athlete's technical, physical, and psychological qualities, as well as a specific development plan for him.
"They offered us not just a place to play, but a project," explains Viden Natsev Sr. to bTV Sports, defining this as the main difference between the approach in France and the one the family encountered in Bulgaria.
Before embarking on this path, however, Viden was close to completely quitting volleyball. At one point, he told his father that he was ready to stop. The family did not force him to continue, and the young athlete also engaged in other sports, even becoming second at the Hungarian Open Golf Championship for under 18s.
Ultimately, he started missing volleyball and decided to return on his own. In the very next season, he became a national champion with CSKA and won the MVP award.
In France, Viden has the opportunity to combine sports with education. He is currently a student at the University of Montpellier, where he studies "Business Management," and his volleyball journey continues in Narbonne.
His father admits to bTV Sports that the decision for his son to represent France was difficult, but he also describes it as one of the family's best decisions. According to him, both of his sons are products of the French volleyball system.
"In their hearts, they are also Bulgarians. They rejoice in Bulgaria's successes, and no one can erase their roots. But their sporting homeland is France – the country that believed in them and gave them the opportunity to become the athletes they are today," says Viden Natsev Sr.
According to him, Bulgarian volleyball should give young athletes more freedom in choosing where to train and play, rethink the system of fees and first professional contracts, and invest significantly more in academies outside Sofia.
"Bulgarian children should want to start their professional path here, not seek salvation abroad," is one of the strongest messages in the interview.

photo: Nikolay Varadinov