22/06/2016 09:14
Italian Alessandro Beltrami to lead Slovenia’s champions Calcit LJUBLJANA
News from the clubs
Ljubljana, Slovenia, June 22, 2016. Last year’s CEV Volleyball Champions League rookies Calcit LJUBLJANA have reached an agreement with Italian Volleyball expert Alessandro Beltrami after their previous head coach Gašper Ribič decided to switch from women’s to men’s Volleyball following three successful seasons at the helm of Slovenia’s national champions.
There was a lot of interest for Ribič’s spot, but the club management decided to offer the contract to Beltrami who left the prestigious and highly competitive Italian Serie A1 team of Liu Jo MODENA at the end of the 2015-2016 season. “I was looking for an opportunity abroad, also in order to get more experience, to try something new and to see if my Volleyball philosophy can be effective abroad as well. When Calcit LJUBLJANA’s project was presented to me, I found it interesting and immediately decided to grab this opportunity,” Beltrami said after being officially presented to the Slovenian journalists. “I am aware that the level of Volleyball in Italy and Slovenia can’t be compared, but I like the challenge, I will try to push the team to a higher level and let’s hope for the best,” the 34-year old Italian who signed a one-year contract, added.
Beltrami will be working with almost the same group of players as last season. Belgian setter Ilka Van de Vyver has already signed a contract for the coming season, as practically all Slovenian players on the roster have done as well, except for team captain Petra Vrhovnik who is still injured and Ana Katarina Hribar who decided to finish her career. The negotiations with Bulgarian outside spiker Slavina Koleva and Serbian opposite Olivera Kostić are about to be finalised as well.
“Since Vrhovnik is still injured, we are searching for at least one outside hitter,” Calcit LJUBLJANA president Gregor Hribar explained at the press conference before disclosing the goals for the 2016-2017 season: “We want to win the Slovenian national championship for the third time in a row and claim back the national cup title. To make it to the final stage of the Middle European league is also one of the goals we have set for the upcoming season. As far as the 2017 edition of the CEV Volleyball Champions League is concerned, we weren’t lucky with the draw. Playing against Liu Jo Nordmeccanica MODENA will most probably move us straight to the CEV Volleyball Cup and we will try to do our best in that competition.”
The team will start the preparations for the 2016-2017 season at the beginning of August.
|