Referee: The results of the last 15 years of volleyball have not been achieved in the last 100 years – Mehr news agency Iran and world’s news
According to Mehr reporter, Mohammadreza Davarzani, head of the volleyball federation, explained the conditions of this field at the press conference of the federations sending to the Hangzhou Asian Games, which was held today, Tuesday (September 14) at the place of the National Olympic Committee.
We had lost to Japan before
He said: As you know, in the last 20 years from the Asian Games in Busan onwards, we were runners-up in the absence of China and Japan and lost twice to Korea. In 2006, at the time of Yazdani Khorram’s transfer and the beginning of my responsibility, the team finished sixth twice and ended its career. In 2010, together with Hossein Mandari, we lost the game to Japan in the final and became the runner-up, but in 2014 and 2018, they won gold medals in both the Asian Games and the Asian Championship.
We prepared for the third Asian medal
He said: We participated in some competitions with team B and now we prepared ourselves for the third gold medal of the Hangzhou Asian Games. Fortunately, the performance of volleyball in these two decades, especially in the basic ranks, is the first word. During this time, we won the championship and runner-up twice, and this year, the under-16 team also added to the honors of volleyball and won the championship title in Asia.
They say why did you define ideals and goals?
He continued: “For the senior national team, we are also trying to fulfill the promise of winning the Asian Games.” Some friends criticize me because I define ideals and goals for volleyball, while we should move according to goals and strategies, sometimes we have ups and downs due to the change of generation.
Japan is the pride of Asian volleyball
With the changes that have happened in the last few years, Japan is known as a contender in the world, and this is a good thing for Asian volleyball because Asian volleyball was lagging behind. The Japanese have become one of the current powers in volleyball with their good planning in the last few years, and it is a good thing for us and Asia to be able to have a tough competitor. Because competition causes growth.
Losing against Japan will be a good challenge for us
The head of the volleyball federation, pointing out that after the Nations Cup tournament, we became the runner-up, he said: Considering the performance of the national volleyball team in the past years, winning the runner-up position did not satisfy the people, and this is a very good challenge. It is for the national team and it shows that the level of expectations from Iranian volleyball is high.
I hope we will return to the top of Asia
We hope to take advantage of this opportunity and overcome some weaknesses to take the top spot in Asia. I hope that in the future, China will also join the Asian championship course. The plan of the Federation is to have a strong presence in Hangzhou to achieve the best results. Of course, this competition is not considered in the world ranking, but for us, this competition is prestigious, and by winning a medal, we should improve the status of Iran’s caravan.
Volleyball needs relaxation
Regarding what the main need of the national volleyball team is before participating in the Asian Games, the referee said: We just need calmness to get a result. The Asian Championship event brought us a lot of mental and emotional pressure. But it is not good to be passive under the influence of the media. First, the burden of losing to Japan should be removed from the shoulders of the players. We need to separate from these conditions and renew the good spirit so that the team can return to normal conditions. Kids need relaxation to play and it’s partly due to the media that the team is mentally doping. Definitely, in this case, we can get an acceptable result in Hangzhou.
We will go to Hangzhou and Brazil with the right flight
In response to the short distance between the Asian Games and the Olympic qualifiers and whether the necessary conditions for a suitable flight have been considered, he said: the cost of a ticket to Brazil and Hangzhou is equivalent to 11 billion tomans, and financial challenges are a point that should be taken into account. do. We will go to Hangzhou and Brazil with the right flight. We have one heavy game and two semi-heavy games, and the other Asian games are such that they can prepare the team for the Brazil tournament.
We have won Olympic quota through ranking
In response to the concerns about obtaining the Olympic quota, taking into account that Iran’s position in the ranking of the top 10 teams in the world is also in jeopardy and we may not be able to go to the Olympics through the ranking, the referee said: We will do our best to obtain the Olympic quota, on the other hand, we will do our best. We use to maintain our position among the top 10 teams in the world ranking. Going to the Olympics and being among the top 4 teams is still one of our goals. We have already won the Olympic quota through the ranking. But we have 12 games in next year’s League of Nations, each of which is important for us to maintain the rank. Because competitors can take our place. We have to fight to stay at level 10 and 9. Holland, Cuba and Türkiye are our serious competitors in the ranking. Our main goal is to maintain our position in the upcoming competitions, including Brazil and the League of Nations, and to have a strong presence in the Olympics.
Talking about the elections after the Asian Games
The referee said about the elections of the volleyball federation: I will talk about the elections after the Asian Games. The main goal of the national volleyball team is to win a share in the Olympics and after that to advance in the Olympics. We are now in the Olympics and we have to fight to be ranked 10th and 9th in the world. Holland, Cuba and Turkey are below us and we have to fight to maintain our position.
Iran can be among the top four teams in the world
Referring to the fact that when I came to volleyball, we were 27th in the world and 6th in Asia, the head of the volleyball federation said: I believe that Iran can be among the top four teams in the world. The teams that are currently higher than Iran have the conditions to move in the table, and just as the Japanese were able to be among the five teams, we can also be among the four teams.
We have not had such results in the last 100 years
The referee continued: We can claim that the results of 15 years in Iranian volleyball have not happened in the last 100 years, and our volleyball country has this capacity and talent and can be in the best position. The day we started, it was 1,500 to 2,000 tomans, and now we plan with 50,000 tomans, and the costs have increased 20 to 30 times.
They see everything in football
The referee said: They see the country’s sport only in football and they do everything for football, but this is not the case with volleyball. Although the National Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Sports have given help to volleyball, the eyes are focused on football.
China and Korea can also challenge us
Pointing out that we are planning for a successful participation in the Olympics, the head of the volleyball federation said: We don’t want to fall short of our goals, which is to be among the best teams in the world. Japan is our main opponent, but China and Korea are also planning and they can challenge us in the future, but our goal should be to beat Italy, Poland and America, and we have been able to beat these teams many times.