Kazan, Russia, May 26, 2020 – 2019 FIVB Volleyball Club World Championship bronze medallists Zenit Kazan are back in training after the long break prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. The team that also won the men’s Russia Cup and Superliga silver this past season got together for an outdoor session on Friday, wearing masks and gloves and following social distancing rules.
The anti-pandemic measures in the Russian Republic of Tatarstan were relaxed and after Zenit's volleyballers and staff all produced negative coronavirus tests, head coach Vladimir Alekno was able to bring his team together on the sand courts of the Beach Sports Centre and resume practicing for the next club season.
According to the work plan, the team will practice four times a week until the end of June. After a short off-period, the preparation for the start of the championship should resume full out after July 20, when the two foreign stars of the squad, France’s Earvin Ngapeth and Poland’s Bartosz Bednorz, are expected to join in.
“Of course, this is our provisional plan and it may change depending on the situation or depending on possible national team calls for our players. We’ll call this first period ‘tidying up’ after the self-isolation – physically and, where possible, technically. To start preparing for the season after one month of vacation is one thing, but to do it after four months is completely different. This never happened in my coaching career and I was afraid of it. So I am glad we can start working,” Alekno said.
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