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TEPIC, Nayarit, Mexico, July 10, 2022.- Head
Coaches of the teams at the NORCECA Men’s Final
Six Pan American Cup gave their first statements
on the eve of the competition that gets underway
on Monday at the Amado Nervo Auditorium of Tepic,
Nayarit.
As teams officially registered during the
preliminary inquiry, Cristobal Marte Hoffiz
NORCECA President confirmed that the winner of
the event qualifies to the 2023 NORCECA
Continental Championship. He also added that
teams will earn ranking points in route to
qualify for the 2023
Pan American Games of Santiago and the 2023
Central American and Caribbean Games.
Dan Ota, Head Coach of Canada:
“We have a young squad, we don’t have a lot of
international experience, but we are really
excited about this group because they have
physical talent and great potential for
international play. We had a couple of scrimmage
matches against our host Mexico and it looks
promising so far that maybe our team could have
a great result here. If we stay healthy, keep
performing and improving every day we’ll have a
very good result”.
Nicolás Vives, Head Coach of Cuba:
“Our intentions are to give our best, prepare
well for the FIVB World Challenger Cup which is
our next most important immediate competition
(end of the month), we are gearing up. We are
also preparing for the Pan American Cup and the
World Championship. Cuba’s major objective is
always to win the competition”.
Alexander Gutierrez, Head Coach of Dominican
Republic:
“Our team has grown, it’s very young with an
average of 21 years old; there is more youth
than experience, but the experienced players
contribute a lot to our youngsters. This
competition has different characteristics from
the final four, with Mexico and Puerto Rico
having other figures, while we have the same
base because we are in the process of our young
players' growth thinking of their future, in
addition to the enrichment of having the United
States and Canada. For us it’s an addition to
our experience”.
Jorge Azair, Head Coach of Mexico:
“It’s an interesting competition, with high
quality teams, Cuba is bringing their first team
and we know that United States and Canada always
have competitive squads. Dominican Republic,
Puerto Rico and us always battle strong. It will
be a nice competition, and the best of it is
that it is in my country”.
Owald Antonetti, Head Coach of Puerto Rico:
“We are taking this summer as a big step in
establishing several players that are moving up;
after last summer’s success, we want to
strengthen our teams’ success with new guys, and
we want them to understand the importance of
volleyball in Puerto Rico. This tournament is
one step towards competing in the World
Championship, we are testing players”.
Andy Read, Head Coach of United States:
“I think my team is very well prepared, the
competition will be excellent, all six teams are
very strong here and the host city is also well
prepared, they are excited to have the
competition here. We will hopefully have great
crowds and supportive for everyone and the USA
will play very well”. |
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