Joanna Wolosz – Leading from the front for club and nation

Joanna Wolosz has spent the past decade establishing herself among Poland's leading players, and having enjoyed plenty of success she is now focusing on her role leading her country and her club team Imoco Volley Conegliano.

The 31-year-old made her Poland debut in 2010 and went on to make 11 appearances at the Japan 2010 FIVB Volleyball World Championship.

Ten years on she completed the decade as club champion of the world following Italian champions Conegliano's victory at the Shaoxing 2019 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship.

And now she has embarked on a second decade that promises even more successes - already on a roll after leading Conegliano to the only title that eluded them after winning the 2021 European Champions League.

Alongside a roster of star players that included Italy's Paola Egonu, Miriam Sylla and libero Monica De Gennaro, the Netherlands' Robin de Kruijf, and USA's McKenzie Adams and Kimberly Hill, Conegliano defeated Eczacibasi VitrA Istanbul with a 3-1 (22-25, 25-14, 25-19, 25-21) win in the final of the Club World Championship.

Then, unperturbed by the cancellation of the 2020 Champions League due to the coronavirus pandemic, she carried on to lead Conegliano in the final of the 2021 edition for a stunning 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-23, 15-12) win over VakifBank Istanbul.

Wolosz was named as best setter at the 2019 Club World Championship and as Conegliano captain was the player who lifted both the world and the European trophies.

"What a World Championship. It was an amazing tournament," Wolosz said. "This is our first World Championship, and we are incredibly happy. It was our dream to win this championship and I think we deserve this."

"We played really well. Our block-defence system was really good. We were mixing our game and we did a good job overall. Playing Eczacibasi is never easy. It was the best way to win this tournament."

Over the summer of 2021 Wolosz extended her contract with Conegliano and in September helped the club win yet another trophy with the Italian Supercup.

Success with Poland has not been as forthcoming despite the team's improvement in recent years. They finished fourth at the 2019 European Championship, appeared in the 2018 and 2019 FIVB Volleyball Nations League (VNL) and won the 2019 Montreux Masters.

However, they missed out on the London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games, and the Italy 2014 and Japan 2018 World Championships.

Poland's latest heartache came in January 2020. Having finished second behind Serbia at the Tokyo Volleyball Qualification tournament at home in Wroclaw, they then lost to Turkey in the European qualification tournament semifinals which mean they didn't get to play at Tokyo 2020.

While Wolosz did not make her Olympic debut, she does have her eyes fixed firmly on further success at club level. And Imoco have started the season well with five victories in as many matches in the 2021/22 Lega Pallavolo Serie A Femminile.

• Watch all the matches of the Italian men's and women's leagues, including Joanna Wolosz's matches with Conegliano, live or on demand on VolleyballWorld.tv.