The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) closed the “Antropova case“, according to Italian media.
The young and promising opposite hitter Ekaterina Antropova, who made Italian and Russian volleyball authorities lock horns, will be from now on considered the owner of the Russian sport nationality. That is what the FIVB communicated in regard to the case of an 18-year-old player, who this year made her debut in Serie A1 with Savino Del Bene Scandicci and immediately turn the spotlight onto her, saying that she was registered for the first time in her country of origin, Russia, even though she was born in Iceland.
The whole commotion began when Scandicci presented the list of players for participation at the 2022 CEV Challenge Cup. Prior to this, Antropova had already been registered as an Italian for three seasons (in the Green Warriors Sassuolo, Division 2) before coming to Scandicci, which, along with the player’s agency, claim that she has participated at a very young age only in tournaments organized by the Russian Ministry of Education, never in federal competitions. Furthermore, the decision of the FIVB does not take into account the existence of a letter from the Russian federation (VFV), confirming that Antropova has never been registered in that country.
Scandicci and Antropova’s agency have announced that they will appeal against the FIVB’s judgment and they also expect an official position from the Italian federation (Federvolley), which has never intervened on the subject so far but have plans to include the player in the national team, just like the VFV. In the meantime, Antropova remains under suspension, i.e. can’t play, which started on October 20. This is because she cannot take the field as an Italian, pending the appeal, nor as a foreigner because, for that, she would have to possess the International Transfer Certificate (ITC) issued by the FIVB itself, which is not the case.
An absurd situation, indeed, for one of the biggest talents in European volleyball…
