Amsterdam, Netherlands, December 4, 2018 - Gido Vermeulen has resigned from his post as head coach of the Dutch national men’s volleyball team. Vermeulen took this decision after the evaluation of the 2018 international season. The coach was in charge of the Dutch elite squad for four years, guiding the team to the FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship for the first time since 2002. At the World Championship in Italy and Bulgaria, the Netherlands finished 8th in the final standings, their best result since 1998.
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“I’ve had a fantastic time with this team, and I think we’ve reached as high as we could,” the 54-year old Vermeulen explained. “I would like to thank all the staff members and players for their effort and support in the last years. Four years ago the goal was to bring the team back to a top eight position in a major intercontinental tournament. Now that we’ve succeeded, it’s time for me to seek new challenges.”
In 2015, Gido Vermeulen was appointed as the successor of Edwin Benne as head coach of the Dutch men’s team. Vermeulen coached 116 official internationals matches in the FIVB Volleyball World League, the European League, the CEV European Championships of 2015 and 2017 and the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship of 2018. Prior to this assignment, Vermeulen was head coach of the Dutch national women’s team (2012 – 2014).
At the most recent World Championship, the Dutch team surprised many by beating world class teams like Brazil and France. The 8th place in the final standing immediately affected the position of the Netherlands on the newest world ranking with the team jumping from the 25th to the 15th place.
Vermeulen renewed the roster of the national team drastically over the last few years, when experienced players retired. Players like Daan van Haarlem, Dirk Sparidans, Thijs ter Horst, Robbert Andringa, Michaël Parkinson and Nimir Abdelaziz (as opposite) were promoted from the bench to the starting team. Talented players like Fabian Plak, Wessel Keemink, Tim Smit, Wouter ter Maat and Just Dronkers also made their debut in the orange jersey under Vermeulen's guidance.
“We are very grateful for all the effort Gido has put in the development of Dutch men’s volleyball, not only in the last four years, but also in the decades before,” Joop Alberda from the Dutch Volleyball Federation said. “With the national team, he qualified for the World Championships for the first time since 2002. Thanks to the good results at the final round in Italy and Bulgaria, the Netherlands is allowed to play in the Olympic qualification tournament in 2019.”
The Dutch Federation is currently searching for a new head coach for their men’s team. In 2019 the Netherlands will co-host the CEV European Championship, together with France, Slovenia and Belgium.