Much bigger and stronger opponents await the Korean national team than at the Asian Championships. Kim Yeon-gyeon is silently preparing to deal with them.
The Korean women’s national volleyball team left the country on the 14th to participate in the 2024 Paris Olympics qualifiers to be held in Łódź, Poland from the 16th to the 24th. In this Olympic preliminary round, a total of 24 countries will be divided into three groups and compete fiercely, and only the top two teams from each group will advance to the Olympic finals.
Korea was placed in Group C along with Poland, Italy, the United States, Germany, Thailand, Colombia, and Slovenia. It is a tough group where no team is easy. In addition, the trend is not good due to the successive poor results in the 2023 International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Volleyball Nations League (VNL) and the 2023 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Women’s Championship. It may be cliché, but a miracle is needed to advance to the Olympic finals.
Kim Yeon-gyeon, who met with at the departure site on the 14th, also acknowledged that the current situation is not optimistic, saying, “It is true that it is a very difficult situation.” However, Kim Yeon-gyeon said, “That doesn’t mean we can’t do nothing or give up. He also strengthened his resolve by saying, “I am continuing to prepare with the mindset that if I continue to do my best, good results will come someday.”
Kim Yeon-gyeon, who rejoined the national team from the last Asian Championships, will again serve as the national team’s unique libero along with Moon Jeong-won. “We need to be better prepared in all aspects than at the Asian Championships. It is also important to maintain concentration until the end of the game. Kim Yeon-gyeon, who calmly pointed out the points of improvement, saying, “Only then will there be good results,” said, “I am having many conversations with (Moon) Jeong-won, asking and answering questions about how we can do better in defense and receiving. He also said, “It helped me a lot.”스포츠토토
As the schedule of international competitions continues and the 2023 Gumi-Dodram Cup professional volleyball competition is scheduled, the national team players, including Kim Yeon-gyeon, are in a difficult physical situation. Moreover, Italy, the first opponent in this Olympic qualifier, is a team that has a clear advantage over Korea in not only overall strength, but especially physicality and power.
Kim Yeon-gyeon said, “The schedule is very tight, but it can’t be helped. We are trying to manage as much as we can and continue to improve our status. In particular, if we meet a European team like Italy after the Asian Championships, we expect that it will not be easy to match the opponent’s changed power and height, so we are trying to improve our status even more.” It was revealed that there was.
At the end of the interview, Kim Yeon-gyeon said, “Even though it was early, many fans came to the airport. Thanks to that, I think I can perform with more strength. I will show you that I do my best. “I will have a good trip,” she said, thanking her fans. What kind of performance will Kim Yeon-gyun and his national team players show in the first game against Italy, which will be held in a while? As Kim Yeon-gyeon said, fans are hoping for results from players who do not give up, and perhaps even more.