11/05/2018 22:00
Maurice Torres – A man who loves, lives, breathes and sleeps Volleyball
2018 CEV Volleyball Champions League - Men
Kazan, Russia, May 11, 2018. Maurice Torres is literally one of a kind – in many ways. Born in Puerto Rico, Torres grew up in California – but has been proudly representing Puerto Rico internationally for a number of years. On Saturday, Maurice will be carrying Zaksa KEDZIERZYN-KOZLE’s dreams of glory when the 2017 Polish national champions play Italy’s Cucine Lube CIVITANOVA in the first semi-final of the highly anticipated Final Four of the 2018 CEV Volleyball Champions League – Men in Kazan. It does not surprise that Torres will have much responsibility put on his wide shoulders – since he has been the second best scorer in the competition this far with a haul of 176 points.
“I was born in Puerto Rico but raised in California,” Torres admits. “I played for the USA youth and junior national teams but as an opposite I had less opportunities there and in order to have more playing experience I decided to switch allegiance to Puerto Rico, where my roots are. I feel very proud and it is an honour to represent Puerto Rico on the international stage,” he continues. “On top of this, it has been a dream of mine to play in the CEV Champions League since my early years in Volleyball. I still remember I watched the live stream of the matches while attending classes when I was 16 or so,” he says.
After leaving the United States to play professionally for the first time in 2013-2014, Torres practically spent his entire career in Italy until he moved to Zaksa KEDZIERZYN-KOZLE last August. “I just wanted to challenge myself and did this by stepping out of the comfort zone, thus growing as an athlete and as a person as well,” Torres continues. “On top of this, I found at Zaksa a great coach such as Andrea Gardini, who really knows a lot about the sport. The environment I found there has been pushing me to grow and improve – and I have been learning something every day, even with none speaking or telling me something. The management there runs the club extremely well and we have some amazing fans, who push you to give everything you have.”
The CEV Champions League Finals come at the end of a long, exhausting season, where Zaksa recently had to relinquish their national league crown to PGE Skra BELCHATOW. “I think one of our main assets is that we always want to win – and if we lose, we know there is another game to play. We have a strong sense of togetherness and we share the same goal as a group,” Torres recounts. “I am sure that we are not done yet for this season and we want to make sure that the hard work we have done pays off. This will be our attitude as we prepare for the semi-final with Cucine Lube: nothing else matters than to play the best we can.”
Torres feels a similar sense of togetherness with his family, especially with his parents who are both deaf, even though they live on the other side of the world: “My mom is my role model and my idol. I am who I am mostly because of her. I am the third of four children and she has sacrificed a lot for me and my three sisters,” a visibly emotional Maurice admits. “She was a Volleyball player herself and a high-school all state athlete. My father, on the other hand, played basketball in Puerto Rico, whilst two of my sisters played Volleyball and one played soccer. My mother, who is a school principal, has done everything to provide us with an opportunity to grow, mature and develop and I am incredibly grateful for everything she has done for us.”
Maurice feels that strong bond with Puerto Rico as well: “I did not grow up there, but it feels home as well. It is such a beautiful island and the people are so welcoming and hospitable. Unfortunately, after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico last year, life has become extremely challenging there and many people are living, especially to the USA for better opportunities. There has not been any Volleyball national league this year – and our players have moved to countries as diverse as Bahrain and Romania in order to find a team. Many elite sportspeople and musicians with Puerto Rican heritage have done a great job in trying to bring some relief. I feel proud of my Puerto Rican roots and if someone asks me whether I feel American or Puerto Rican, I find it difficult to answer that question. I think there is a bit of both in me.”
Torres has been an incredibly prolific scorer in this year’s Champions League, second only to Aleksandar Atanasijevic of Sir Colussi Sicoma PERUGIA. “This achievement is testament to the strength of our team, it is the result of a collective effort,” Maurice humbly acknowledges. “The most influential coach I have had in my career said that the strongest teams in the world are those with the best second teams, because the ‘reserves’ are pushing the starting players to perform and to improve, otherwise they will be losing their spot. I have been playing professionally for five years only and I feel like there is still room to grow for me.”
Torres admits he is a man who lives, breathes and sleeps Volleyball, and his ultimate dreams are to represent Puerto Rico at the Olympics and win Italy’s national league one day. What does make Volleyball so special in his eyes? “I think anyone who comes to watch a high-level match will be a Volleyball fan for life. There is no-stop action and Volleyball encaptivates you like no other sport does.” Maurice will be trying to savour the moment this weekend in Kazan – as much as he has done ever since he started playing the game as a young teenager in California.
Click here for further information or visit the official website http://finalfour.zenit-kazan.com/en.
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