Sofia, Bulgaria, April 16, 2018. For anyone who is attending the matches of Hungary at the 2018 CEV U17 Volleyball European Championship – Women in Pool I is slightly impossible not to notice the great team spirit among the staff and the players of that same team. It became quite normal to hear them singing before practice or seeing them dancing, taking the best out of the experience, called #EuroVolleyU17W.
Who is “The Guilty One” for this situation, you might ask yourself.
The name is Gabor Konig – the youngest head coach at the tournament. Konig, aged 33, is heading Team Hungary in Sofia and is from that special group of coaches, that always call the attention during the matches. His reactions and the emotions he transmits to his players can’t be left aside: “Yes, it is true. I move a lot during the matches, I talk a lot to my players, trying to communicate with them. Actually, I am trying to be a ‘reporter’ for them. As the reporters try to give the correct information to the public, I am trying to report to my girls what I see in the situation, “re-reading” it for them and this way – trying to guide them better.”
From the very first moment the Hungarians arrived in Sofia for competing against the strongest teams in Europe, Gabor Konig and his staff have been trying not only to “train” the girls, but also to make #EuroVolleyU17W an experience to remember. “My tactic is to enjoy and have fun. We are not so strong from a physical point of view, we are not so tall, so we have to find another way to play and take what we can,” he continues.
For Konig, who was named Best Coach of the Year of Youth teams in Hungary in 2015 because of winning three championships in different age groups, it is the first time being the head coach of a National team: “Of course, there is pressure now – the responsibility is enormous. But yet again – I keep on enjoying things and I should mention that it is my players’ “guilt” because they are never giving up. Maybe being younger helps me communicate better with my team, I understand them better because it was not so long ago when I was their age. On the other hand, the other coaches are more experienced.”
Hungary recorded three losses so far at #EuroVolleyU17W in Pool I (1-3 from Slovenia, 2-3 from Bulgaria and 0-3 from Belarus) but to Konig, reaching the Finals of the 2018 U17 CEV Volleyball European Championship – Women is a goal achieved, laying the foundations for a bright future of Hungary’s Volleyball: “Some of my players have great potential and it is our job now and here to make them more and more experienced. Maybe some of them are the future stars of Hungary.”
On the other hand, Gabor Konig believes that his team, formed of young girls, could inspire also other young people in Hungary to play Volleyball: “I think that our team, the spirit that we have, could inspire other people start playing Volleyball, enjoying the sport. My players here saw that being in the National team does not always mean only pressure but also love for the sport and great emotions,” the head coach that is trying to spread inspiration for Volleyball confirms.
And despite their chances to continue in the tournament are low (Hungary is placed sixth in Pool I and will meet the strong teams of Serbia and Russia on Wednesday and Thursday respectively), they might be pleased with the inspirational experience, called #EuroVolleyU17W which gave them the chance to show that in sports winning is important but not everything.
Click here for further information.