Egypt coach selected the squad as Iran camp cancelled

10 March 2011

Cairo, Egypt, May 15, 2008- Egypt head coach selected 19 players for the 2008 World League who will start their active preparations for the competition that show their third participation in a row after the preparation camp in Iran was cancelled by the Egyptian Volleyball Federation.

The selected players are Abdalla Abdel Salam, Ashraf Aboul Hassan, Mohamed Abdel Rahman (Setters), Hamdy El Safi, Saleh Fathy, Mohamed Abdel Monem, Ahmed Yossef, Mahmoud Raouf, Mohamed El Daabousi (attackers), Mohamed Ali, Hossam Shaarawy, Abdel Latif Othman, Mohamed El Nafrawi, Ahmed Mosaad (Centers) Ahmed Salah, Mohamed Gabal, Mahmoud Mansour (Opposites), Wael El Aidy and Mahmed Meawad (Liberos).

The preparation program will start by a local camp in the Olympic Center till the team travels to another camp in Alexandria before their first match against Poland 13 June. Egypt will start the 2008 World league with 4 local matches against Poland in the first weekend and Japan in the second weekend of the intercontinental round.

Egypt will seek their first ever World League victory this year after two seasons without a victory in 2006 and 2007. The Egyptian volleyball Federation changed the strategy of organization this year as they send two weekends to the second capital Alexandria which will enjoy good weather that time of the year being a major city by the Mediterranean Sea.

The third home weekend will be held as usual in Cairo at the big Cairo Stadium complex with its well known big hall of 30.000 spectators’ capacity that showed one of the biggest attendances all over the world last year.

All the Media in Egypt are waiting for this year’s World league as the conditions for National team are favourable for achieving a victory in Pool D that will comprise Egypt alongside with Poland, China and Japan.

Egypt defeated China in the 2005 FIVB Grand Champions Cup and passed a long Marathon of five sets three times against Japan in their homelands in the 2005 Grand Champions Cup, 2006 World Championships and 2007 World Cup, but all ended for the home side.

The competition will be covered by all the local Media and will be transferred live through the local Egyptian Channel, the Egyptian Satellite channel and the Nile Sports Channel.