FIVB Women’s Volleyball World Championships
- Sept. 29 – Oct. 18, 2018
- Schedule/Results
The Turkish women found success at the Volleyball Nations League Tournament, finishing second to the United States in the finals and posting an 11-4 mark in preliminary round action.
Fourteen members of that team, including best setter Cansu Ozbay and best middle blocker Eda Erdem Dundar, are listed on the preliminary roster for the 2018 World Championships.
Setters Cansu Aydinogullari and Elif Sahin and hitter Tugba Senoglu are new to the group.
Turkish Volleyball Federation spokesman Kurtaran Mumcu said the Board of Directors is thrilled with the national team’s results thus far.
“As a federation, we tried to create a young national team,” Mumcu said. “The successful results we received in the Nations League were instrumental in the nation’s expectations to be very high. When our players were given a chance, they showed that they could move Turkish volleyball to the level that will compete with the giants of the world.”
Turkey begins the World Championships in Pool B alongside Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cuba and Italy, with matches set to be played in Sapporo, Japan, from Sept. 29 to Oct. 4.
The roster of 17 will gather for a training camp in Istanbul on July 26 and play friendlies with the Netherlands and Canada in August. From there the Turkish team will gear up for the world’s largest stage with performances at the Gloria Cup, August 22-26 and at the Montreux Masters tournament in Switzerland, Sept. 4-9.
Coach Giovanni Guidetti spoke about his initial 17-player roster, stating that whittling the group down to 14 will be a process over the next few months.
“We’re going to start a prep camp with 17 people,” Guidetti said. “After the camp, our staff will be down to 14 people, but we will play many matches and tournaments to determine the 14-person roster. We will try to be better with each passing day as a team rather than (worrying about)the game we play in the preparation matches and the results we receive. We have achieved a significant success in the League of Nations. The World Championship is very important tournament for us.”
Turkey 2018 World Championships Roster
- Middles: Eda Erdem Dundar, Beyza Arici, Zehra Gunes, Asli Kilic
- Setters: Cansu Ozbay, Cansu Aydinogullari, Elif Sahin
- Hitters: Meliha Ismailoglu, Seyma Ercan, Hande Baladin, Salia Sahin, Tugba Senoglu
- Opposites: Meryem Boz, Ebrar Karakurt
- Liberos: Hatice Gizem Orge, Sebnem Simge Akoz, Aylin Sarioglu
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