Former national team captain Vladimir Nikolov has sharply criticized the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) over the organization of the Nations League and the proposed changes to the global calendar, which foresee world championships being held during the winter months.
In an interview for the 500th anniversary episode of "Sportcast Volleyball," published on November 4, the 2006 World Championship bronze medalist did not hide his indignation at decisions that, in his opinion, prioritize commercial interests over the health of athletes and the quality of the game.
"The VNL in its current format is an idiocy from the people at FIVB, who most likely have never played volleyball and who are in no way interested in volleyball, only in its commercial side," Nikolov stated.
According to him, holding four matches within five days is an excessive load even for volleyball, which he describes as a gentler sport compared to football, basketball, and handball.
The former national player also drew attention to the absence of leading world stars from a significant portion of the Nations League matches.
"We, the volleyball community, are creating a tournament for people to watch, without watching the stars they want to watch. This is madness," he commented.
According to him, a large number of the best volleyball players miss the first two tournaments and only join in the final part of the competition. This, according to Nikolov, also puts organizers, who pay for hosting but cannot guarantee the presence of the biggest names, at a disadvantage.
His position on the proposed relocation of world championships to winter was particularly categorical.
"World championships every two years I can understand. I cannot understand women's world championships in December, men's in January. That I cannot understand. This will kill volleyball," Nikolov warned.
He described such a change as a "crime against athletes and clubs" and raised the question of how volleyball players would manage to maintain optimal athletic form when club championships are interrupted for national teams.
"A team is built for three months. The moment you start to look like a team, you disband and are gone for two months. For two months you go to the national team," he explained.
Nikolov gave an example of the need for athletes to reach peak form at different periods of the season.
"I want to know when the peak of athletic form should be? January, when the World Championship is, February, when the cups are played, or March, when the playoffs are? It's not possible."
According to the former national player, the load is not only physical but also emotional, and the continuous transition between club and national teams will negatively affect the quality of volleyball.
He also questioned the logic of the planned rest periods, given that the international calendar itself creates the conditions for accumulating fatigue.
"Clubs feed the athletes. And their families. Not national teams. National teams enrich the International Volleyball Federation," Nikolov stated.
Bulgaria's former captain also warned of the possible consequences if the proposed changes are implemented.
"They will start not showing up for national team matches. That's what will happen. When they hold a world championship and 50 top athletes don't show up, they will reconsider. The question is, does it have to come to that? Can't it be thought about in advance?"
Nikolov also spoke about the strain during the Nations League tournament in Chicago, when the Bulgarian team was forced to play with minimal recovery time between matches.
As an example, he pointed to the late end of the match against the USA and the early start time of the next match against France, which, in his opinion, left the athletes insufficient time for sleep and recovery.
"There's no way anyone can convince me that they care about volleyball and they care about the players. That's not how it's done," he stated emphatically.
In conclusion, Vladimir Nikolov emphasized that his criticisms were not solely dictated by the fact that his two sons, Aleksandar and Simeon, are part of the national team.
"This is not about me being a parent of two children. This is about me being a person who is interested in volleyball. These decisions are against volleyball. Against the quality of volleyball."
According to him, the main result of such changes will be the further enrichment of FIVB at the expense of clubs, players, and the technical and sporting level of international matches.
"The only effect of this is the enrichment of FIVB and an insufficiently good level of volleyball in the matches they will hold. That's it. There will be no other result," Nikolov concluded.