Gold medals in the World League, 2015 European Champions and fourth place in 2014 World Championships – these are only some of the most recent achievements of the next Wagner Memorial participant.
The team which confirmed their participation in the tournament is France! What’s interesting is that many Polish fans have also been asking us to invite Team Yavbou. For France it will be the third time in the Wagner Memorial. Earlier – in 2015 in Toruń (3rd place) and six months ago in Kraków (2nd place). The fans are hoping that Les Bleus will give them opportunity to see one of the best and the most erratic volleyball players in the world – Earvin N’Gapeth.
Last year the staff decided not to bring him to the tournament due to his injury. Many experts saw the fact that N’Gapeth was not in his best shape as the main reason France got quickly eliminated from Lotto Eurovolley Poland. After the group stage, they unexpectedly lost the playoff 1:3 against Czech Republic and did not advance to the quarter final. It’s not a secret that Team Yavbou wants to be fully prepared to the World Championships in Bulgaria and Italy, which is most likely why they decided to take part in the Wagner Memorial.
During the group stage of 2018 World Championships, Les Bleus will face Brazil, China, Canada, Egypt and the Netherlands.
The presence of team France confirms that the Hubert Jerzy Wagner Memorial is constantly regarded as a prestigious event by volleyball teams all over the world. It also ensures a high level of the competition, which will take place from 24th to 26th September this year. Team France joins Poland and Russia and it is not the end, as the fourth participant will also be one of the top teams in the world – says Jerzy Mróz, the founder and main organizer of the Hubert Jerzy Wagner Memorial.
