Gearing up for World League – Team Bulgaria

Got a little time before they start up again in Corrientes, so let’s knock another World League piece down. Here’s the rundown as last we left it:’

Egypt Portugal
Japan
Iran
Netherlands
South Korea
Finland
Canada
Italy
Argentina
Serbia
Russia
France
Brazil
Germany
Bulgaria
Cuba
USA
Poland

In the grand scheme, Bulgaria aren’t exactly a perennial powerhouse on the world scene, but they are a pretty common participant. Last summer was their eighth appearance at the Olympics, stretching back to the very first tournament in 1964. Their high-water mark is silver, at the only-partially-attended Moscow Games of 1980, but they’ve been between 4th and 7th in all their other appearances. They’ve played at every world championships, with four bronze medals and a silver to their credit, including a bronze in 2006.

That record, together with fourth places at both of last year’s major international tournaments, suggest a team who are consistently on the cusp. And, to be sure, that’ll mean they every once in a while do get over the hump, though they don’t appear to have ever actually won a major tournament, ever. They’ve played all but two CEV European Championships, finishes all over the map from silver to 11th. They’re a team you can expect to always be there, or pretty close anyway.

The Bulgarian federation organise a volleyball “SuperLeague” (common name), that currently has 12 first-division teams and 9 second-division teams. About half the current national team play at home, with others heading to Italy, France, and Russia. Their clubs have never finished as CEV Champions League semifinalists under that tournament’s current guise, to say nothing of the Club World Championships.

Outside hitter and London alumnus Todor Aleksiev, who plays club in Russia, is the current floor captain. He’s a 7-year veteran of club and international play, and won both the Best Scorer and Best Receiver awards at last year’s World League. Those aren’t awards you would typically expect to go to the same player, and they paint a picture of undeniably strong two-way skill. Setter Georgi Bratoev is another London holdover, though it appears he didn’t actually see any playing time at the Olympics. He is above average height for a setter (6-foot-8) which, provided he has the baseline skills necessary to be an effective setter, is a very nice bonus. His twin brother Valentin Bratoev likewise returns from last summer’s formation of the Bulgarian national team, but likewise doesn’t look to have actually played on it in London.

Other returners include middle blockers Viktor Yosifov and Tsevetan Sokolov, as well as outside hitter Nikolay Penchev (does anyone actually say “wing spiker” ?) and the libero Teodor Salparov, who is probably the team’s next-most-experienced player after Aleksiev. The Bulgarians might well have the youngest player in the whole tournament, with 18-year-old Krasimir Georgiev suiting up for them. Surprisingly, he’s already seen time with the senior national team, although not at the Olympics nor the World League last year. His position isn’t listed, but by his measurables he’s likely a back-row specialist. Of course, he may grow into a front-row role — literally.

So are we looking at a winner?

Well, now that I know how many damn teams are in the finals….

I’m inclined to say no, but I tell you what — if I was doing a preview series like this for last year’s Olympics, I would have speculated that the Bulgarians profited from the overall relatively weak field to come up with 4th place at the World League. The fact that they were also 4th at the Olympics suggests they really do belong in this crowd. But are they going to beat Brazil and Poland, and for that matter the Americans? I wouldn’t be confident of it.