Pakistan’s Iranian Volleyball Coach Finds Talent

Iran’s head coach of Pakistan national volleyball team Hamid Movahedi has said that he has found exceptional female talent in Karachi and deputed five coaches to train them.

“Pakistan never paid any heed to working on national volleyball, which resulted in the national men’s volleyball team lacking way behind in Asia and at the world level. Pakistan’s team is nowhere. But after saying that, I can add that in my last six months, I have worked very hard and I hope talented Pakistani players can compete against any team and produce more than the desired results,” Movahedi said in an interview with Pakistani newspaper The Nation.

He said that he must accept that Pakistan Volleyball Federation chairman Chaudhry Yaqoob is a key supporter of volleyball and his efforts cannot be denied. “The passion of PVF chief for the game brought me here as national team coach and I have been working hard with the teams.

“Now we have 18 youth players and same amount of juniors. It will take extra effort as six months is not enough to change the fortunes of a national team. But now my youth and junior teams are top class and they will replace seniors in the next year or so. I still believe we need another two to three years to change its fortunes.”

Movahedi explained that he had established a long-camp at Peshawar and was pleased with the hard work of juniors. “In only six months, my players participated in the junior event and bagged fourth position, which is quite heartening and a proof that we are on the right track,” he added.

Currently he is working on a junior team for the upcoming Youth Championship in Iran in July and the Junior Championship in Bahrain. For the first time in Pakistan, a youth team age group 17 has been formed, while juniors are U-19.

“I also worked on beach volleyball and female volleyball team. In Karachi I saw very talented young girls who turned up for trials. I picked 28 players who will be an asset for Pakistan in the coming years. I have deputed five assistant coaches in Karachi to train them and later invite them to Islamabad for a camp. Actually, they need international exposure which will help them excel at higher levels,” Movahedi told the newspaper.