INTERVIEW
04.06.2014
“VakıfBank adds the Bulgarian star to the team”
Elitsa Vasileva first started playing volleyball with the guidance of her coach. After 2
years, she started playing basketball with her sister at the age of 11 and made statements on
our official website wearing her new VakıfBank jersey. After playing in Italy, Brazil and South
Korea, “Etsi” expressed her happiness of being in Turkey which is a close country to Bulgaria.
She also drew attention with her joyful behaviours and energetic appearance throughout
the interview.
As well as holding too much information about Turkey, she enjoys reading translated Turkish
books and is familiar with the Turkish cuisine. Vasileva also added that she always dreamed
of living in Turkey and is already counting days for the new season.
VB: Welcome to VakifBank and our country. As a Bulgarian, Turkey is not a far
country to you. How does it feel to be in Turkey and VakifBank?
EV: It is really nice to be here in Turkey. I still cannot believe I am here and will be here for
the whole season. It is like a dream come true. And I’m also very happy that Turkey is very
close to Bulgaria and I will be close to my family.
VB: In spite of your young age, you gained a lot of experience in Italy, Brazil and
South Korea. Now you are in Turkey. Did you ever plan playing in different
countries which have very different volleyball cultures, or did it occur
spontaneously?
EV: last year South Korea was the best to choose from all the choices I had .Brazil, however,
was one of my dreams and a country that I really wanted to go. I wanted to learn Brazilian
volleyball and gain experience. Also, I really wanted to work with Ze Roberto and I made it
happen. About Turkey, as I mentioned before, I really wanted to come here a lot. I follow the
Turkish League and know the teams that play here. I always watch the Turkish League
matches when I have time. It is really a high-quality league and I am very happy that I am
going to take a place in this league.
VB: You are a world record holder with your 57 points in one match in South Korea. What
happened in that match? How does it feel to be a world record holder?
EV: I do not see this as a big success actually. We played a 5-set match and all I thought was
to win it. Our setter chose me a little more to throw passes and this was the result. I could
not believe it either when I looked at the score sheet after the match. All of my
achievements makes my family and friends happy and that’s what only matters for me.
VB: By signing with VakifBank, you are back in European volleyball. What are your
goals and expectation here?
EV: I want to improve my game in every match I play with VakifBank and I want to win all of
our matches. I hope we achieve this as a team.
VB: You are going to play against Turkish National Team with the Bulgarian
National Team. What do you think about that match? Who impresses you the most
among Turkish volleyball players?
EV: I think we are going to play high-level matches against the Turkish National Team. We are
going to play in World Championship and every country will be aiming to pass through the
group matches. Turkey is a really good team with good quality volleyball players. I think both
teams are going to be strong and the spectators will watch breathtaking matches. I know Naz
Akyol and Gözde Sonsırma from VakıfBank in Turkey and I also know Gözde’s twin sister Özge
Çemberci. Naz and Gözde are really very successful players.
VB: There is going to be a tough competition both in the team and all for the
championships. Are you ready for this?
EV: I am definitely ready to compete. I am look forward to the day that I am going to be on
the volleyball court with my team. I think if we play as a team, we will be successful in every
championship. Of course we are going to have very strong opponents, but if we manage to
act as a team on the court I think there is no match that we cannot win.
VB: Do you have any message to the whole VakıfBank family and fans?
EV: I am very happy to be here and I look forward to the first match to see my VakifBank
family and fans.
For Press Release, Player interview and photographs follow the link below.
http://vakifbanksporkulubu.com/media-kosesi.aspx?pageID=64