Regla Torres, who was voted the best player of the 20th century and three-time Olympic champion by the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), experiences a completely different situation as assistant coach of the Cuban selection.
At the top of the world with titles at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics, Cuba dominated the world of women’s volleyball. In 1992 in Barcelona, Torres became the youngest Olympic gold medalist in her sport at the age of 17.5.
Guylaine Dumont remembers very well the time when the Cuban selection enforced its law. “They were unbeatable,” sums up the Olympian at the 2004 Games in Athens. They were so much more athletic than everyone else. I had a very good swing, but there were six Guylaine Dumonts on the other side of the net. There were also girls who had better impulses than me.
The 6-foot-2 former assistant Cuban selector believes patience will be required until Cuba regains its place among world powers.
“The current situation is not easy to accept, but we must be patient,” she warned. We won’t be able to get back to the level of the best teams in the short term. After the departure of several girls, we are rebuilding with a new generation of players.”
“I started playing volleyball at a young age, whereas now players come to the national team with very little experience. Volleyball schools need to be reborn to develop technique and fundamentals. In my time, the conditions for success were met, which is no longer the case today.”
Some players left the communist regime. The best Cuban player plays in Turkey, where she received citizenship in her adopted country. The same goes for the men, as one of the best players in the world wore the colors of Poland at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.
“It is very difficult to lose such a good player, but we have to develop the younger players. Volleyball players can now play abroad; They receive 80 percent of their salary, the rest is paid to the Cuban association. For my part, I had received permission to play in Italy and Japan, otherwise I would never have left. Cuba is my country.”
Bronze medal for Canada
Canada was beaten by the Dominican Republic in the semifinals of the Norceca Continental Women’s Volleyball Championship on Saturday and came back strong with a win in sets of 25-21, 25-17, 17-25 and 25-16 to edge Cuba for the bronze medal on Sunday get hold of.
In the final, the big American favorites lost to the Dominican Republic in five sets with 12:25, 25:21, 19:25, 25:19 and 15:13.