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Fresh from lifting the Volleyball Nations League trophy in Ningbo, Poland’s national team was expected to waste no time turning its attention to the next major objective: EuroVolley 2026. Instead, an unexpected travel disruption has slightly altered Nikola Grbić’s plans.
The Polish head coach will begin preparations with the same 15 players who captured the VNL title in China, despite naming an extended 25-man roster for the European Championship. As is often the case before major international tournaments, only the core group will report for the opening phase of the training camp in Zakopane, a popular resort town in southern Poland at the foot of the Tatra Mountains, right near the border with Slovakia and about 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Kraków, while the remaining players stay on standby and can be called up if necessary.
The squad gathering in Zakopane includes setters Marcin Komenda and Jan Firlej; opposites Kewin Sasak and Bartłomiej Bołądź; middle blockers Bartłomiej Lemański, Szymon Jakubiszak, Jakub Nowak, and Jakub Majchrzak; outside hitters Tomasz Fornal, Kamil Semeniuk, Wilfredo Leon, Aleksander Śliwka, and Artur Szalpuk; together with liberos Jakub Popiwczak and Maksymilian Granieczny.
The only change concerns the schedule. Instead of arriving at the training camp on the afternoon of August 10, the players will now reach Zakopane later that evening, with the first practice session moved to August 11.
The adjustment was confirmed by Poland’s national team press officer, Mariusz Szyszko.
The reason behind the delay dates back to the team’s journey home from China. After winning the VNL title in Ningbo, Poland departed on August 3 on a route from Ningbo to Beijing and then on to Warsaw. However, a delayed domestic flight caused the squad to miss its connection to Poland, forcing the entire delegation to spend an unplanned night in the Chinese capital.
Getting everyone home proved to be a logistical challenge. The following day, the players were split across several different itineraries. Some returned via Frankfurt, others flew through Stockholm, while a third group waited for the next available direct flight to Warsaw. Among those stranded the longest were Finals MVP Tomasz Fornal and fellow outside hitter Kamil Semeniuk.
Rather than letting frustration take over, the team embraced the unexpected detour. Speaking with local medias, Semeniuk joked that the extra day simply became an extension of the championship celebrations.
“What happened in Ningbo stays in Ningbo,” he said with a smile.
Fornal also shared a glimpse of the unplanned stopover, explaining that several teammates made the most of their time in Beijing by enjoying dinner together and taking a walk through the city centre before heading back to the airport.
According to Szyszko, Grbić decided to push back the opening of the training camp by half a day to give his players a little more time to recover after the exhausting trip.
The press officer also praised the professionalism shown by the entire delegation during the travel chaos. Despite finding themselves thousands of kilometres from home, with Poland asleep because of the time difference, the team remained calm while a completely new travel plan was organised in just a few hours.
Poland will now spend the next two weeks preparing in Zakopane before competing in the prestigious Hubert Jerzy Wagner Memorial, where they will face France, Slovenia, and the United States. The annual tournament will provide Grbić’s side with one final opportunity to fine-tune its game before beginning the defence of its European ambitions at EuroVolley 2026.
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