Ary Graca
“Volleyball and beach volleyball had a wonderful year in 2016. Now it is time for us to do even better. Please accept my best wishes for the year ahead on behalf of all of us at the FIVB.
With the FIVB Volleyball World Championships in Japan and Italy and Bulgaria in 2018 and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games just beyond, we have a wonderful year to look forward to, with so many opportunities to show the best of our sport.
The highlights of our year will be the big competitions, the FIVB Volleyball World League, World Grand Prix, FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships as well as the next Club World Championships, Volleyball World Grand Champions Cup and Age-Group World Championships. But every day, there are players, coaches, officials and administrators who are working to develop new talent, to bring our sport to new places and to new families. Every part of this puzzle must work together, must work hard and with imagination, if we are to achieve our ambition of becoming the world’s number one family sport entertainment. Always, we must ask ourselves: is there more we can do, is there something new that will help?
For the 2017 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships we will go to Vienna for the first time, where I know we can look forward to big, passionate crowds of fans. We will have fan activities around a state-of-the art stadium and we will see exciting competition in a festival atmosphere better than ever.
The 2017 edition of the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix will now feature a record 32 teams showcasing the development of the competition and providing more countries around the world with the opportunity to participate. This year the FIVB has also tripled the prize money for the winner to show how our sport will continue to reward those who are prepared to work harder than everybody else.
The FIVB World League will equal the record of 36 teams and the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix will now feature a record 32 teams. We will support every level of the sport: from the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Champions Cup to the FIVB Men’s and Women’s Club World Championships, and the FIVB Age-Group World Championships.
To create all of these opportunities has taken and will continue to take a huge amount of work from an FIVB team that I am incredibly proud of, and that we should all be proud of. The FIVB will provide opportunities to shine. But they are nothing without strong teams and players.
Now it is up to the federations to take advantage of these very special opportunities, to prepare and send their very best players and officials. For those who are willing to work hard, the FIVB is always ready to help and support, with seminars for coaches and for officials and with technical assistance. Our own FIVB teams will also cross the world supporting the federations who are determined to grow our sport and to build on our successes. Working together in this way, I know we can make a great success of 2017. I look forward to working with you.”
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0 comment
Mr. Graca, the queston for you is: What can you as volleyball offer to one averige family so they start to come to watch volleyball games? Start from this wuestion and everything will be much clear
a) I appreciate that FIVB under leading of Mr. Graca has kept some independence in taking important decisions.
b) Moreover it is good that they try to get the volleyball to fans via the Internet broadcasting.
c) However a serious negative fact is that FIVB is responsible for selection and using of very poorly visible and recognizable balls for Internet/TV viewers. Unfortunately these balls function as rotated color wheels or Newton disc, which create the disappearing and blurring visual/optical illusions, when balls are quick and rotate. (Note – not all transmissions apply the slow motion replay which is only way to see the trajectory of such balls). These feature have negative consequences for volleyball to access to TV, to attract the strong sponsors etc.
d) Of course there are some more issues to deserve to deal with….
FIVB events are important, no question. But imho, club volleyball is even more important. Thats where players earn their money and spectators have the chance to see good volleyball on a weekly base. Right now, the clubs are just picking up the rests, of what NT season leaves of the players.
Mr Graca, please overthink the the expanditure of the international calendar and leave the players and clubs some air to breathe….
@The Hoff – In each International Competition only 12-14 players get to compete, and each country usually only invite about 20-30 players to practice with the NT, which means only a very few % of players get busy in the summer with the NT, this leaves thousands and thousands and more thousands of players available to play for their clubs.
And no country and no player is forced to play in any tournament, a country can withdrew anytime from any tournament.
Very important for a volleyball progress is a composition of Commissions and other expert bodies of FIVB. There could be seen a reflection who in reality tries to pull strings in this organization, moreover how function some national volleyball federations… Some example –
Technical and Coaching Commission, but also others – no one from Poland, Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria etc – volleyball powerhouses…..It is strange …. Languages should not be a problem for their experts, contrary. It indicates on the reserves in work of these particular national volleyball federations which should prepare, recommend their experts in various fields, as others do.. .
It reminds WADA, where some biggest, strong sport countries and some regions do not have any representatives, despite they have experts, and experience… Then there has been a space for manipulations..
Hope the FIVB under Mr. Graca would avoid such mistakes. Yet he has a strong support of majority of NVFs…