Mark Lebedew takes charge of Slovenia

The Slovenian federation announced Mark Lebedew as the new head coach of their men’s national team on Thursday. The Australian specialist will lead the silver medallists of the last three EuroVolley tournaments and the current number eight team in the FIVB World Ranking on a two-year contract. His first season with the team will include the FIVB Volleyball World Championship in Russia and the FIVB Volleyball Nations League. He takes over the position from Italy’s Alberto Giuliani.

“Slovenia has a very good team, that every coach wants to work with. Their results speak for themselves about the quality of the national team. I also like the people who are involved in working with the team, the representatives of the Slovenian federation and the environment itself. These are all things that appeal to everyone. I am very motivated for the work and for the competitions that await us. I am motivated to achieve even better results than in the past,” said Lebedew.

“The VNL will be a good opportunity for the further development of young players. The World Championship will be our priority and I am convinced that we can significantly improve the achievement from 2018,” the 54-year-old Australian added. “My approach is based on aggressive, attacking volleyball. I like a fast game and rely on constant attacking and putting pressure on the opponents with the block and the good defence. In my way of working, I give a lot of importance to my players and given how experienced the team is, this will be particularly visible. Urnaut, Vincic, Pajenk and others are great players with a lot of experience. I want to take advantage of this and help the Slovenian national team make a step up.”

Lebedew’s previous national team experience includes coaching the Volleyroos of his native Australia, with three silvers and a bronze from the Asian Championships. He was also an assistant coach of Germany in 2013.

He is currently in charge of the VfB Friedrichshafen men’s team. His previous coaching positions in club volleyball include teams from Poland, Germany, Italy and Belgium. In addition to winning a CEV Champions League bronze coaching Berlin Recycling Volleys in 2015, Lebedew claimed three national titles and two silver medals in the German Bundesliga with the team, among a number of other domestic competition podiums with various other clubs.

Quick links:
FIVB Volleyball Nations League 2022
FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship Russia 2022
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