After the premier League of Nations, Croatia will fight to remain among the elite in France
This Thursday, July 27, the Croatian women’s volleyball national team will compete in the Challenger Cup, which will be played in Laval, France. It is a qualification tournament for participation in the Nations League. Although Croatia finished in penultimate place and South Korea in last, our girls still have to fight to stay in this prestigious competition. South Korea has a protected status.
In addition to Croatia, the host France, the Golden European League Ukraine and Sweden finalists, and the selections of Kenya, Colombia, Mexico, and Vietnam will play in the Challenger Cup. Croatia qualified for this year’s VNL last year in Zadar when they won first place with a victory against Belgium.
The first match against Ukraine will not be easy because they won the Golden European League this year, which speaks volumes about their strength. As the tournament is played as a knockout phase, in the event of a win, our next opponents will be the home team of France, which has a great ambition to win it by hosting it.
Ema Strunjak, Croatian middle blocker
Our volleyball players will have their first performance on Thursday, July 27, against Ukraine. The match starts at 8:30 am. The composition of the Croatian team for the Challenger Cup is the same as in the last League of Nations tournament, except for Fabris and Trcol, whom Strize and Freund will replace.
