Coaches at CAZOVA U23 speak about their goals

KRALENDIJK, Bonaire, June 22, 2018 -- The inaugural CAZOVA (Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association) Under-23 Women’s Championships will be staged from tonight at the Jorge Nicholas Sports Hall in Bonaire.

Teams from Aruba, Curacao, Suriname, United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and the host country will be do battle in the straight round-robin competition until Sunday to determine the champions.

The coaches of the teams spoke about their preparation and expectations for the tournament.

ARUBA – Daan Kleinbussini – We have a new group of players and do not have any real expectations. Some of our players are aged 13, 14 and 15 and the experience will be great for us.

CURACAO – Gilbert Paulina – We have been practicing for a year and are at a good level. We are going for the gold.

SURINAME – Victor Lesperans – Four of our top players are not here because of exams, but we still have a strong team and are still capable of winning.

USVI – Isaac Raphael – We are not fully prepared because of the recent hurricane, but we should be after our training session today. We came expecting to win.

BONAIRE – Rudy Anthony – We trained hard. The objective is to play well. We have a very young team, including a player as young as 12, but we have home court advantage.

This is the first CAZOVA competition to ever take place in Bonaire, one of the smallest islands in the Caribbean with a population of just over 18,000.

The venue was named in honour of former Bonaire president Jorge Nicholas, who passed away following heart surgery in 2012.