VolleyBar125# : Friday November 6, 2026

On this day…
Amarcord and volleyball birthdays, italian “friends”, Pascual Saurín, CEV and ParaVolley, KEPCO Vixtorm, Fahry Septian Putratama and Est Cola Volleyball Thailand League 2027

Welcome to the 125th Episode of VolleyBar!
Every now and then, and still today in last episode before a well-deserved weekend break, it is worth reminding our readers – especially those who have joined us more recently – that we were the first to create a daily column bringing together all the major volleyball news of the day. The Italian versions that have emerged since are nothing more than poor imitations.
Even worse, they have repeatedly taken news directly from our work, including Jan Hadrava’s injury, Korea and even Youth Olympic Beach Volleyball Champions in Dakar – all of which we obviously published yesterday, only to see them appear shortly afterwards in what they call “Mondo Volley” but is a mere imitation of VolleyBar.
These are, of course, the same people who have previously published word-for-word translations of our articles without ever crediting the original source. And they continue to do so today, failing to acknowledge us even after copying virtually every piece of news we publish here.

Either way, “professionals” and plagiarism apart, November 6 has a strong international footprint in the archives, particularly in women’s volleyball. The date includes matches from the 2010 World Championship in Japan and the 2011 Women’s World Cup, with several notable five-set encounters and a memorable Italian performance.

At the 2010 Women’s World Championship in Japan, on this day, Italy defeated Germany 3–1 (22:25, 32:30, 25:8, 25:15) recovering after losing the opening set.
The second set was the turning point: Italy edged Germany 32–30 before dominating the next two sets. The match was part of the second-round Pool F in Nagoya.

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, Poland beat South Korea 3–2 (12:25, 25:17, 25:18, 22:25, 17–15). Poland recovered from a disastrous first set, but Korea pushed the match to the limit before the Polish side secured the win. 

The 2011 Women’s World Cup continued its opening round on November 6 across Hiroshima and Nagano.
Italy, coached by Massimo Barbolini, overcame a close opening set against the Dominican Republic before taking control. China and Japan, meanwhile, played another five-set contest, with China prevailing in a tense tie-break. 

Twelve years ago, on November 6, 2014, Sir Safety Perugia played the first European match in its history. The debut came directly in the CEV Champions League group stage, against Halkbank Ankara, the reigning continental runners-up. At the PalaEvangelisti, Nikola Grbić’s team claimed a 3–1 victory (25:23, 23:25, 25:23, 30:28).
In the fourth set, the Turkish side surged ahead 14–8, but Perugia mounted a comeback and eventually closed the set at deuce with an ace by Simone Buti.

Bulgarian middle blocker and national-team player Nasya Dimitrova turns 34 today and was born on November 6, 1992. She has played for clubs across Bulgaria, Romania, Türkiye and elsewhere, and represented Bulgaria at the 2018 and 2022 World Championships.

Zhang Changning celebrates her 31st birthday today. Born on November 6, 1995, in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, China, the outside hitter is best known for winning Olympic gold at Rio 2016. Her birthday in 2026 therefore falls in the year marking the tenth anniversary of that triumph. Her career also includes a bronze medal at the 2018 World Championship and appearances at the Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games, making her a three-time Olympian and one of the key figures of the Chinese national team.

Julie Lengweiler, born on November 6, 1998, turns 28 today. Swiss outside hitter and national-team player, her career includes championship titles in Switzerland and Finland, and she won the Japanese SV.League with SAGA Hisamitsu Springs in 2026.

Also Cuban opposite hitter Heidy Casanova was born on November 6, 1998. Known for her powerful attacking game, she has played professionally in France, Brazil, Romania, Ukraine and the United States, and has been part of the Cuban national-team setup.

Turkish setter and former national-team player, with reported appearances for the Turkish national team and club honours including Turkish league titles Burak Yavuz turns 51 today and was born on November 6, 1975.

Back to the present, Spain will enter a new era in international volleyball after the Royal Spanish Volleyball Federation (RFEVB) confirmed the departure of women’s national team coach Pascual Saurín, ending his 13-year tenure as part of a wider overhaul of the country’s national team programs.
Appointed in 2013, he led Spain through 227 matches and oversaw a generational transition. His tenure was highlighted by Spain’s return to the 2025 FIVB Women’s World Championship after a 40-year absence.
Spain also qualified for four consecutive European Championships, reaching the knockout stage for the first time in 2019, and claimed European League bronze medals in 2017 and 2021.

In Poland, PGE Projekt Warszawa claimed their third victory of the season after defeating Ślepsk Malow Suwałki 3-2 in fourth-round Tauron Liga clash, while in France Tourcoing Lille Métropole beat Arago de Sète 3-0 (25:23, 25:23, 29:27) in Round 5 of France’s Ligue A (Alterna Volstar) on Thursday, 5 November at Léo Lagrange.

CEV President Roko Sikirić sat down with the leadership of ParaVolley Europe (PVE) to discuss opportunities for a closer cooperation with the organisation responsible for the governance of Sitting Volleyball and Standing Volleyball in Europe and to further strengthen inclusion across the European Volleyball community.
This eventually resulted in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations.

“We have agreed on pursuing a general cooperation framework so that we can further cement the role of Volleyball as a sport for all and strengthen its contribution to a more inclusive society,” the CEV President said.
“ParaVolley can play a truly powerful role in this respect. Through this cooperation, we can show that European Volleyball can reach far beyond the traditional boundaries of our game, thereby creating opportunities for people of different abilities and bringing communities together through sport“.

For ParaVolley Europe, the cooperation represents an important opportunity to bring the Volleyball and ParaVolley communities even closer together and to ensure that athletes of all abilities can benefit from the visibility, networks, and opportunities created through the wider European Volleyball family.

“ParaVolley is part of Volleyball, and this cooperation is an important step towards bringing our communities even closer together,” said PVE President Branko Mihorko. “We share the same court, the same values and, above all, the same passion for our sport. By working together, we can create more opportunities for people with and without disabilities to discover Volleyball, strengthen the development of ParaVolley across Europe and give our athletes and competitions greater visibility.”

Through closer cooperation, CEV and ParaVolley Europe aim to use the power of sport to reach new audiences, support athletes and communities, and contribute to a more inclusive society across Europe.

Meanwhile, in Korea, KEPCO Vixtorm secured an impressive victory over defending champions Korean Air, winning a hard-fought four-set battle, 25:23, 18:25, 26:24, 27:25, in the 2026–27 V-League men’s division.
The match also featured a fantastic showdown between Canadian national team members: KEPCO’s Sharone Vernon-Evans stole the spotlight, delivering an explosive 26-point performance on a highly efficient 56% attack rate. On the other side of the net, fellow Canadian Xander Ketrzynski fought hard for Korean Air, finishing with 15 points.
The result leaves both squads sitting at identical 1-1 records early in the season.

Indonesian national team outside hitter Fahry Septian Putratama has officially signed with the Ahmedabad Defenders for the upcoming 2026–27 season of India’s Prime Volleyball League (PVL).
He will join fellow Indonesian national team member Luvi Nugraha.

The countdown is on for the 22nd edition of the Est Cola Volleyball Thailand League 2027 (VTL 2027), which officially gets underway on November 13, 2026, featuring eight teams each in the men’s and women’s divisions.
The 17-week competition will feature a total of 124 matches, running through April 4, 2027, with action taking place across four venues in Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima.

Here are partecipating clubs of both divisions:

MEN’S
• Nakhon Ratchasima 3M Film VC
• Diamond Food Fine Chef–Samut Sakhon
• A4S Koh Kood Cabana
• Bundit Asia–Mueang Phon
• Nakhon Ratchasima College Kham Thale So
• Prasert-Ni-Kul
• Phitsanulok VC
• Navy 2024 VC (Promoted from Pro Challenge)

WOMEN’S
• Nakhon Ratchasima 3M Film VC
• Harudot Chonburi RMUTT VC
• Supreme TIP Chonburi–E.Tech
• Khon Kaen University Khon Kaen Star
• GLO Miracle Nakhon Nonthaburi
• Kanchanaburi Power Volleyball Club
• RSU VC
• Ang Thong National Sports University VC (Promoted from Pro Challenge)

Now it’s time to say goodbye and wish you all a great weekend of volleyball and much more. Of course, VolleyBar will be back on Monday. In the meantime, we’ll be keeping a close eye on the daily columns that copy ours, curious to see where they’ll be getting the news they publish…

___________________

👀|QUICK LINKS
• VolleyBAR 📝🏐
• Multimedia
• Facebook
• Instagram

___________________