While Russia isn’t quite ‘home’ for 2016 FIVB World League MVP and Serbian outside hitter Marko Ivovic, it is much closer than Brazil, where he spent the 2017-2018 professional season. Russian side Lokomotiv Novosibirsk has announced that the 27-year old Ivovic has signed a one year contract to play for the team next year.
He spent last season playing with Funvic Taubate in Brazil, who finished as runners-up of the Brazilian Super Liga.
He missed the European Championships for his home nation last summer after suffering an injury in a friendly competition against Slovenia. Earlier in the year, he led his team in scoring at the 2017 FIVB World League, with 189 total points. His effort lead Serbia to a 3rd-place finish in pool play, though they were eliminated in the Final 6 level of competition before advancing to the knockout stages.
He joins a Lokomotiv Novosibirsk team that was in need of a refresh at the outside hitter position. At 27-years old, Ivovic is 2 years younger than Novovsibirsk’s two primary outside hitters Lukash Divish (32) and Sergey Savin (29). In fact, the whole roster was aging: 9 of its 14 players will turn 30 by year’s end. Novosibirsk has not yet announced who will be leaving the team to make room for Ivovic.
Novovsibirsk finished 6th in the Russian SuperLeague last season, combiling 15 wins and 11 losses (46 total points) over the season. They were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the playoffs by Dinamo Moscow and were eliminated from the classification rounds by Novy Urengoy. The club finished 3rd in the Russian Championship in 2017, are twice the winners of the Russian Cup (2010, 2011) and in 2013 won the CEV European Champions League.
CLUB CAREER:
- 2008-2012 – “Vojvodina” (Serbia)
- 2012-2013 – “Maliye Milli Piyango” (Turkey)
- 2013-2014 – Paris Volley (France)
- 2014-2015 – “Resovia” (Poland)
- 2015-2016 – Belogorie (Belgorod, Russia)
- 2016-2017 – “Resovia” (Poland)
- 2017-2018 – Funvic (Brazil)
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