London Volleyball International Invitational tournament kicks off in UK
The London Volleyball International Invitational tournament will commence today, July 20th, at Earls Court in London, England. The tournament is scheduled to last until the 24th of July.
Earls Court is also scheduled to host the indoor volleyball matches for the 2012 London Olympics. That is why the tournament will also serve as a test for the court that has to feature top international athletes next year. Any changes that are felt necessary
to be made after the tournament is complete will be duly made for the Olympics.
In all, there are six teams that are taking part in the tournament, with every team getting the chance to compete with the other. The teams that will be making a show of their skill in the following four days are Brazil, Egypt, Great Britain, Mexico, Serbia
and U.S.A.
Two players on the U.S. squad are those that were part of the 2008 Olympics lineup which was able to secure a gold medal in the event.
Riley Salmon, the U.S. player that will be making his debut as a libero in the tournament made the following comments regarding the matches ahead: “I think our goal is just to be a little more cohesive as a team. I think my job will be to bring cohesiveness
back to where it was in 2008. If we can get better in between the time we get there and the time we leave, the results will speak for themselves.”
The first match for the U.S squad is going to take place against Serbia while on Thursday the Americans will be facing the Egyptians. Friday will be witness to a clash between the U.S side and the Mexicans. On Saturday, the squad will go head to head with
the host team. The last match that the Americans have scheduled is with the Brazilian squad.
The London Volleyball International Invitational tournament does not serve as a qualifying ground for the Olympic event next year. That opportunity will be provided to the teams in the FIVB World Cup that will take place from November 20th to December 4th.
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