Sofia, Bulgaria, April 19, 2018. Being a leader is not an easy job. The pressure is often high – especially in the tough times, when the true leader should take the right decisions in the right moments.  In Volleyball, as it happens in sports in general, the leader often is the captain of the team - the one who is supposed to impress and make an impact not only on court but off the court as well. Somebody who can make the others feel more comfortable, inspiring them with confidence and guiding them towards the next victory.

It seems that Italy U17 - Women have found the right person for that role. Her name is Sofia Monza – the Best Setter of the 2017 CEV U16 Volleyball European Championship - Women. For a second consecutive year, Sofia, who is only fifteen years old, is drawing attention to her skills in the Bulgarian capital with her performance during the matches of the Azzurrine at the #EuroVolleyU17W. After the outstanding performance they delivered at the inaugural #EuroVolleyU16W last summer (when Italy lost only one set on their way to the gold medals), the Italian team now, being composed of almost the same players from 2017, qualified for the semis with five victories out of five matches in the pool stage of the competition.

“We are very happy with our performance until now at #EuroVolleyU17W. Of course we would like to improve in some elements but we are really focused and we will try to continue that way in the decisive phase of the tournament,” Monza said.
Brought back to the memories of 2017, Sofia describes the emotion that she and her teammates felt like “unforgettable”. In the Final the Azzurrine defeated Russia with a straight 3-0 win and were crowned as the first champions ever of the U16 age group.

“Yes, I have a lot beautiful memories from last year in Bulgaria but every tournament is different and we have to concentrate now on this championship. If you want to be on the top again, you have to prove your place is there. When I was awarded as Best Setter last year, I felt very proud and very satisfied but honestly, I also realised that this was only the beginning and I had to keep on improving and developing as a player.”

What is the feeling of being the captain of this great Italian team?
Sofia is happy to be leading Italy: “It is really emotional! We were able to build a great collective; we stand behind each other. We are a beautiful group of girls and I’m proud to be the captain of this great team!”

Sofia started to play Volleyball six years ago in a small town near Milan, called Grancia and to date, she is a player of the Italian club Yamamay BUSTO ARSIZIO. Her favourite Volleyball players are Eleonora Lo Bianco and Maja Ognjenović.
Born on May 11, 2002, Sofia has one big dream: “My dream is to represent Italy at the Olympic Games!”
And why not? One thing is for sure – she has the potential and the right attitude to make every dream come true.

However, the first aim for Sofia now is leading the Italian team coached by Marco Mencarelli, to a second consecutive European gold. In order for that to happen, the Azzurrine will have to win over hosts Bulgaria in the semifinals of the #EuroVolleyU17W on Friday.

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