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Most of the players that represented Argentina in Tokyo last year will return for another season

Argentina will begin preparing their participation in the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship on May 2, when the first of the 23 players called up by head coach Hernan Ferraro will report for a training camp in Buenos Aires.

Ferraro, who recently extended his contract with the country’s national federation and will coach Las Panteras (The Panthers, in Spanish) until at least the Paris 2024 Games, will have an experienced squad to work with after he called up as many as 11 Olympians.

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At the age of 35, two-time Olympian libero Tatiana Rizzo will be Argentina's most veteran player this season

Ten of those Olympians – setters Victoria Mayer and Sabrina Germanier, opposite Erika Mercado, outside hitters Yas Nizetich, Elina Rodriguez and Daniela Bulaich, middle blockers Julieta Lazcano, Bianca Farriol and Candelaria Herrera and libero Tatiano Rizzo – were part of the team that finished 11th at last year’s Tokyo Olympics. They will be joined by middle blocker Mimi Sosa, who represented the country at the Rio 2016 Games.

Ferraro has also selected some younger players to be part of the team this season, most notably 17-year-old setters Juana Giardini and Juliet Aruga and 18-year-old outside hitter Nicole Perez, who were part of the Argentinean roster at last year’s FIVB Girls’ U18 World Championship in Durango, Mexico.

“We expect to gradually rebuild our roster over the next two years,” Ferraro explained. “We have a very interesting group of young players coming up and we want them to start training with our more veteran players and hopefully getting some match experience too. We’ll not force the process, we just want to integrate these players so they can naturally find their space in the senior team.”

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A standout at last year's U18 World Championship, outside hitter Nicole Perez is a new face in her country's senior team

The World Championship will be the highlight of the year for the Argentineans in 2022 and will mark the country’s third-straight appearance in the event. Before heading to Arnhem, where they debut against China on September 25, Argentina will host friendly matches against the national teams of Mexico in May, and Peru in July.

Argentina women’s national team roster:

Setters: Victoria Mayer, Juana Giardini, Julieta Aruga, Sabrina Germanier and Aylen Ayub

Opposites: Erika Mercado, Bianca Cugno and Constanza Perez Sain

Outside hitters: Yamila ‘Yas’ Nizetich, Elina Rodriguez, Daniela Bulaich, Nicole Perez, Daiana Lopez and Guadalupe Martin

Middle blockers: Bianca Farriol, Candelaria Herrera, Julieta Lazcano, Emilce ‘Mimi’ Sosa, Brenda Graff and Marlen Siri

Liberos: Tatiana Rizzo, Agostina Pelozo and Nadia Castagno