site.btaUPDATED Bulgaria Hails Volleyball Heroes after World Silver
A parade took place in downtown Sofia in honour of Bulgaria’s men’s national volleyball team, which on Sunday won the silver medals at the FIVB Men’s World Championship in the Philippines. Riding an open-top double-decker bus, the players made their way toward Alexander Nevsky Square, cheered on by thousands of fans lining the route from the Vitosha Park Hotel.
Bulgaria won the silver medals, after losing the final to Italy 1-3 (21-25, 17-25, 25-17, 10-25) on September 28. This marks the second time in history that Bulgaria’s men’s team has become world vice-champion, coming 55 years after their runner-up finish at the 1970 World Championship in Sofia.
Addressing the crowd at Alexander Nevsky Square, opposite hitter and one of the team’s leaders Aleksandar Nikolov said: “The unity of the entire nation is far more important than any kind of medal. Thank you to this wonderful team. Amazing, hardworking guys. My best friends. What more can I say about you? I am absolutely speechless. Thank you so much for all the support, for the messages, the phone calls, and everything you did for us this summer. I love Bulgaria deeply. I’m glad that we managed to bring the whole nation together. That is much more important than any medal. Thank you very much!” added the outside hitter, who topped the World Championship’s best scorers individual ranking with 173 points to his name, as many as 67 points clear of the next best scorers.
Team captain Aleks Grozdanov said that the players had endured difficult moments and injuries, but all the effort was worth it because of the final result. “Many, many thanks to everyone. It’s unbelievable. I’m extremely happy that we managed to unite the nation. I thank you on behalf of the whole team, because we went through tough times and injuries. In the end, there was a result, and I thank the fans for their support,” Grozdanov said.
Aleksandar Nikolov’s brother, 18-year-old setter Simeon Nikolov, promised that this would not be the first and last festive welcome for the Bulgarian national team on home soil. “I’m very emotional and I can’t believe what I’m seeing in front of me. This is Bulgaria,” he told the thousands of supporters. “Of course, we want to see you here again, and of course we want to win more medals for Bulgaria. We love you from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you so much. We promise you one thing: as long as we play for Bulgaria, every single one of us is ready to give everything on the court. We love you and we hope to see you here again soon,” added Simeon Nikolov.
Head coach Gianlorenzo Blengini also stepped onto the stage, though he kept it brief. “I have no words,” he said in English, before switching to Bulgarian with “Blagodarya vi!” (“Thank you”). The Italian then joined the fans in chanting the beloved refrain “Bulgari yunatsi!” (“Bulgarian heroes!”), which echoed from the square as the crowd gave the team a fitting send-off.
Bulgaria’s men’s national volleyball team returned home Tuesday following their impressive second-place finish at the World Championship in the Philippines. The government plane carrying “The Lions” landed at Vasil Levski Airport at 10:01 a.m., where the team was greeted with a red carpet and a guard of honour.
Earlier during their changeover in Istanbul, the players were welcomed by Minister of Youth and Sports Ivan Peshev before boarding the Airbus A319 for the flight home. The team, led by coach Gianlorenzo Blengini, was met on arrival by Bulgarian Volleyball Federation President Lyubomir Ganev, captain Aleks Grozdanov, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov, and national teams coordinator Nikolay Ivanov.
/KK/
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