Lausanne, Switzerland, March 29, 2019 – Maximiliano Cavanna was the name at the top of the best setters chart after the preliminary round of the men’s 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League. The Argentinean playmaker is already looking forward to the second edition of the VNL and hopes that his team can do better than they did last year.
In a very tough competition in 2018, Argentina won four of their 15 matches, but that included victories against some very strong opponents like Brazil and Italy. Cavanna himself impressed with a total of 995 (or an average of 17.46 per set) running sets, registering only five faults throughout the event.
“I felt very comfortable,” the 30-year-old volleyballer told fivb.com. “I had a good performance during the VNL thanks to the everyday work done and also thanks to my teammates and the coaching staff for giving me confidence. We could have won more matches for sure, but we did not manage to maintain the high level throughout the VNL. If we were more consistent, we could do better.”
The story repeated at the 2018 World Championship. Argentina won three of their eight matches, including a hard-fought five-set victory over world champions Poland. “Yes, it was very similar. We were not consistent enough - we played very good volleyball at some moments and not so good in others. But we played as equals against great teams and beat the current champs,” Cavanna commented.
Moment of joy for Cavanna and his teammates as Argentina beat Poland at the World Championship
In 2019, Argentina will host one of the pools on the first weekend of the VNL, from May 31 through June 2, entertaining Bulgaria, Canada and Portugal, three of the Challenger teams, highly motivated to preserve their spot in the elite competition. “Playing at home is always something beautiful - representing our country in front of the fans supporting Argentina,” the 1.88m-tall setter pointed out. “Playing in Mendoza is going to be an awesome experience since it is a province that breathes volleyball. I hope we can bring joy to our people with some good results...”
Cavanna was also recently honoured at a club level. His Argentinean team UPCN San Juan took the silver at the South American Club Championship after losing the final to Brazil’s Sada Cruzeiro Volei Belo Horizonte, and the playmaker was named the Best Setter of the tournament. “It was a very beautiful final against a tough opponent. I congratulate Sada Cruzeiro because they were better,” Cavanna said. “It is nice to be recognized with an individual award, but it would have been nicer to win the final. The experience was very good, the tournament was great and the organization was excellent...”
UPCN are reigning national champions of Argentina and are currently in the process of defending their title. After finishing third in the regular season, they went through the quarterfinals successfully and now they are in the middle of their semifinal playoff series. “We still have a long way to go, with difficult games ahead. I wish we can defend the title in the best possible way.”
Off the court, Maximiliano Cavanna is a real family man. “I really enjoy spending time with my wife and my son. When I am free, I like taking my son to play soccer or tennis since he doesn’t play volleyball yet. When we finished the VNL last summer, we travelled together to the United States to enjoy the beach and do some shopping in Miami. We haven’t planned anything for our next holidays after the 2019 VNL yet.”
“I would like to have Maxim Mikhaylov from Russia as the opposite hitter. He has a lot of qualities and is very complete,” said Cavanna when asked to name the team of his dreams. “My middle blockers would be David Lee, a true monster in blocking and someone that I was lucky to win a league with, and Lucas Saatkamp, another great player in both attack and blocking. I admire him. For outside hitters I pick Wilfredo Leon and Samuele Papi. Leon is a player from another planet and Papi is awesome in reception and a great player. Alexis Gonzalez would be my libero, since he is an incredible player and person, both on and off the court.”