Champion Eczacıbaşı returns home

Eczacıbaşı Dynavit, which made Turkish volleyball proud, won the cup by defeating VakıfBank 3-2 in the 2023 FIVB Women's Club World Championship Final held in Shanghai, China. The team, which returned to Turkey, was welcomed with an enthusiastic ceremony at Istanbul Airport. Eczacıbaşı Sports Club President Faruk Eczacıbaşı, Head Coach Ferhat Akbaş, and players Simge Aköz, Tijana Boskovic, Hande Baladın, Naz Aydemir Akyol, Elif Şahin, and Irina Voronkova made statements at the airport.

"WE ARE SO HAPPY"

Eczacıbaşı Sports Club President Faruk Eczacıbaşı stated that Turkish volleyball is at the world summit, saying, "Two Turkish teams played the final match in the Club World Championship. They did this on the other side of the world. We are so happy. It was such a sportsmanlike match. I am proud of my girls and our coach. This success is the work of great trust and unity. As Turkey, we can do this. We saw the example of this at Eczacıbaşı. We have proven that we are the best in the world. Turkish volleyball is at the very top of the world. Best wishes to us all. We brought a very beautiful result to Turkey," he said.

Eczacıbaşı Dynavit Head Coach Ferhat Akbaş stated that both teams played very closely in the final and said, "It was a very important final for the country. It was a match that made both the country and the players proud. We are very happy to have brought the championship to our country," he said.

Regarding their goals for this year, Ferhat Akbaş commented, "We play to win every match we enter. We play to win every cup. We have the CEV Champions League ahead of us. We want to win all the cups."

"I ALSO CONGRATULATE VAKIFBANK"

Emphasizing that it is a source of pride for two Turkish teams to be in the final, one of the team captains, Simge Aköz, expressed her views, saying, "It makes me very happy to bring this cup to our museum again after years since 2016. I also congratulate VakıfBank. The team has performed well since the beginning of the tournament. We displayed a very beautiful team game. Even though we fell behind in the final match, we did not lose our belief. Because we knew we had the capacity to win the cup."

"WE WON AGAIN AFTER 7 YEARS"

Tijana Boskovic, who was chosen as the 'Most Valuable Player' (MVP) of the FIVB Women's Club World Championship, stated that she is proud of the team and commented, "We won this cup again after 7 years. We showed a great team game. We were behind 12-4 in the 2nd set, but we kept our belief. We deserved to win this cup. We are happy to have brought one of the most important cups in the world to our museum."

"TWO TURKISH TEAMS PLAYED IN THE FINAL IN THE 100TH YEAR OF OUR REPUBLIC"

Eczacıbaşı Dynavit spiker Hande Baladın stated that they had been waiting for this championship as a team for a very long time and said, "Everyone has a great effort in this championship. Two Turkish teams played in the final in the 100th year of our Republic. We also congratulate VakıfBank. We are happy that we were the winning side."

Naz Aydemir Akyol also stated that they have been improving since the beginning of the tournament and expressed her views, saying, "We experienced a very beautiful championship. It was very nice to close 2023 with such a cup. We played very well. I think we deserved this cup."

Elif Şahin, who was chosen as the best setter of the tournament, commented on the award she won, "It was the first award I received in major tournaments. I am very happy. It also came with a very beautiful success. This award will be unforgettable for me."

Eczacıbaşı Dynavit spiker Irina Voronkova said, "We are happy to be back. This is just the beginning. We will continue. We will get more gold medals. We have a very good technical team. We are tired but very happy."

News Source : 12punto