Team rosters for the 2012 FIVB World Grand Prix take final shape – Volleyball news
The 20th edition of the FIVB Grand Prix women’s international volleyball tournament is supposed to take centre stage on June 8 with sixteen teams from across the globe.
So far, 15 of the sixteen berths of competition have been filled. There is only spot left, which will be captured by either Algeria or Chinese Taipei. The Playoffs for the only remaining slot of the tournament are scheduled to take place in Oran, Algeria
on April 27 and 28. The winner of the Playoff will advance to the 2012 FIVB Grand Prix.
Since there is not much time left in the opening of 2012 FIVB World Grand Prix, the participants of the campaign are quite busy finalising the team rosters. Recently, most of the teams including USA, Brazil, Poland, Germany and few others disclosed the tentative
rosters for of their teams, which have 20 to 25 players in each team.
The FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix defending champions USA have finalised a tentative roster of 25 players, which include almost all the players who competed at the last edition of the tournament.
Last year’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) Destinee Hooker, Heather Bown, Foluke Akinradewo, Jordan Larson, and Lindsey Berg will be defending American legacy at the World Grand Prix.
Furthermore, the American setter Stacy Sykora has also been named for the team. She suffered from serious injuries after an accident in Brazil last year. However, the USAV is hopeful that she will be back in full form at the World Grand Prix competition.
The grid of 25 players will have further changes and only 12 players will be kept for the national team.
The roster of the Polish team has also been unveiled, which includes two-time European champion Katarzyna Skowronska. The addition of opposite Skowronska is the only notable change in Polish team’s roster, while rest of the team remains the same. The team
mentor Alojzy Swiderek has selected the 28-year-old Skowronska to strengthen the Polish team-line.
Brazilian team roster features Jaqueline Carvalho, Thaisa Menezes, and Mari Steinbrecher, all of whom played in the national league finals and did amazingly well. Elsewhere, German team will be playing with the trio of Margareta Kozuch, Christiane Fürst,
and Angelina Grün.
The participants of the 2012 FIVB World Grand Prix are currently undergoing tough training and practice. The coaches have the daunting task to choose the best out of the pool of these players.
The 2012 FIVB World Grand Prix will cover its length from June 8 to July 1. The inter-continental round of the tournament will hosted by different countries, while the Final Round is set to take place in Ningbo, China.
Tags: