Bulgaria's captain Alex Grozdanov and Bogdanka LUK Lublin will participate in the fifth edition of the Bogdanka Volley Cup "Tomasz Wójtowicz". The tournament is on October 10 and 11 in the "Globus" hall and is among the last tests for the hosts before the start of the official matches.
Besides the Polish vice-champion Bogdanka, Projekt Warszawa, Turkish Fenerbahçe, and Slovenian ACH Volley Ljubljana will arrive in Lublin. The rosters of the four teams feature a number of volleyball players who, just days ago, were engaged with their national teams.
Six of the new-old European champions with Poland will be on the court. Grozdanov's teammates at Bogdanka are Wilfredo León, Marcin Komenda, and Kewin Sasak, while Aleksander Śliwka, Bartłomiej Lemański, and Jan Firlej play for Projekt.
Also at Bogdanka is Japanese international Ran Takahashi, while among the well-known names at Projekt are Bartosz Bednorz, Kevin Tillie, and Italian international Yuri Romano.
Fenerbahçe arrives with American star Matt Anderson, Brazilian setter Fernando Kreling – Cachopa, French middle blocker Barthélémy Chinenyeze, and Turkish international Adis Lagumdžija.
ACH Volley also boasts a strong Slovenian core. The squad includes Gregor Ropret, Tonček Štern, Tine Urnaut, Alen Pajenk, and Jani Kovačič. Thus, for two days in "Globus", Olympic and European champions, as well as internationals from some of the leading volleyball nations, will gather.
For Grozdanov, the tournament comes after the end of EuroVolley, where he once again led Bulgaria as captain. The middle blocker is already with Bogdanka and is preparing for the new club season.
On October 10, Bogdanka will face Fenerbahçe in one semifinal, while Projekt Warszawa will play ACH Volley Ljubljana in the other. A day later are the third-place match and the final.
The competition is named after the legendary Tomasz Wójtowicz, and its fifth edition coincides with the 50th anniversary of Poland's Olympic title in Montreal in 1976. Wójtowicz was part of Hubert Wagner's famous team that won the gold.
For Grozdanov and Bogdanka, the two matches will provide an opportunity to test their form against top-class opponents just before the start of the championship.