The Austrian Volleyball Federation (ÖVV) and the head coach of their men’s national team, Radovan Gacic, have agreed on an extension of their cooperation. The Slovenian-born Gacic will lead the group around team captain Peter Wohlfahrtstätter at least up until the EuroVolley 2023 qualifiers scheduled for the summer of 2022. On the other hand, the ÖVV has decided to terminate the contract of Jan De Brandt and has started looking for a new coach for their women’s national team.
“We are pleased that we will continue to work with Radovan and his staff. We made a good catch with him despite an unfortunate year with the men’s national team. The team’s feedback is very positive; they understand each other very well and the players are highly motivated. I hope that the hard work will pay off in the coming year and that we will qualify for the European Championship. If all the players are fit, we have a very strong team.”
Gernot Leitner
ÖVV President
Leitner also thanks De Brandt for his commitment. “It was great that we were able to hire a trainer like him at short notice despite the pandemic. He brought our women’s team through the season well with a sensational silver medal in the CEV European Silver League. The team has developed really well, but we will stop working together at this point and we look forward to a new future,” said the ÖVV President.
Gacic is pleased “that we have found a way to continue our national team programme. The past two years have not been easy for anyone because of the coronavirus pandemic but we somehow mastered all the challenges. There is only one goal left: a successful qualification for the European Championship. If all the players are available and healthy, I have no doubt that we will achieve our goal!”
The European Championship qualification starts on August 3, 2022, while the Austrian women will start their EuroVolley mission on August 21, 2022.
