Ahead of the 2023 FIVB U-21 World Beach Volleyball Championship in Thailand, John Iwerima, head coach of the Nigeria U-21 teams is confident that his lads will give a good account of themselves in the Southeast Asia, PRIMANEWS Sports Extra reports.
The championship is scheduled to be held from November 8 to 13 at the Beach Event Roi Et, Thailand.
Both Nigeria’s male and female teams qualified for the championship after placing fifth and second positions respectively at the 2023 CAVB U21 Beach Volleyball Championship in Morocco in September.
The Nigeria women’s team settled for a silver medal after losing 2-1 (13-21, 21-15, 18-16) to the hosts in a highly intense match at the beach resort in Casablanca.
With five representatives from the continent, both teams qualified for the World Beach Volleyball Championship in Thailand next month.
Preparations have begun in earnest for the tournament with camp opened on Monday.
Speaking with PRIMANEWS Sports Extra, Iwerima said he was confident that the team would have a better outing in Thailand than they did in Morocco.
“We just resumed camp yesterday (Monday) and most of the players are present right now and we are expected to train for about a week then break the camp to attend to the Beach Volleyball tour in Taraba State then come back to the camp,” he said.
“The tour in Taraba also serves as a rehearsal to give the players a competitive atmosphere for the World Championship in Thailand.”
“We are preparing for the World Championship and believe that we will have a better outing because what happened in Morocco was a small hiccup but I believe that we will make some amend and overcome such situation.
“With good preparation and the support we’ve had from the Nigeria Volleyball Federation, I believe we will give a good account of ourselves and make a statement at the World Champions.”
Nigeria missed the last edition of the championship due to the outbreak of the Omicron virus but Iwerima said they were ready to show the world their class.
“It’s been a long time since we attended such a competition because we narrowly missed out on the last one also in Thailand because of the Omicron because this time we are going back there and we are going to show the world what we are made of,” he added.