Bulgarian women's national team coach Antonina Zetova included four of the girls who brought the historic U19 title in 2021 in the squad for the World Volleyball Championship in Thailand. These areDimana Ivanova,Victoria Ninova,Kalina VenevaandDarina Naneva.
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The new captain of the team will be Hristina Vuchkova, after Elitsa Atanasijevic will not travel due to family reasons. Emilet Racheva, Alexandra Saykova and Radostina Marinova are out of the group.
A curious moment unfolded during Monday's open training – Radostina Marinova was not present, her absence being officially excused due to personal problems. On the same day, it became clear that Alexandra Milanova was training on a lighter regime to conserve herself before the upcoming matches.
Preparation before Thailand
Our team departs tomorrow evening for China, where it will participate in a preparatory friendly tournament. There, the Bulgarians will play three matches:
August 16– against Serbia
August 17– against the Netherlands
August 18– against Canada
The purpose of the tournament is adaptation to the time difference and final tactical adjustments before the start of the World Championship.
Bulgaria's squad for the World Championship
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Setters | Lora Kitipova, Dimana Ivanova |
| Outside Hitters | Miroslava Paskova, Aleksandra Milanova, Iveta Stanchulova, Kalina Veneva |
| Middle Blockers | Hristina Vuchkova, Nasya Dimitrova, Mariya Krivoshiyska, Darina Naneva |
| Liberos | Mila Pashkuleva, Viktoriya Ninova |
| Opposite Hitters | Merelin Nikolova, Mikaela Stoyanova |
The squad is balanced between experienced players like Kitipova, Vuchkova and Dimitrova, and partly Mira Paskova, and young prospects, including the four U19 champions. Milanova's inclusion, albeit on a reduced regime, is a good sign, but it will be important to see her condition in China. Marinova's absence, although for personal reasons, reduces the options for the opposite hitter position.
photos: Nikolay Varadinov
