De Brito extension raises questions on Veloso status
Jorge Souza de Brito leaves up his post as Akari coach. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
With Jorge Souza de Brito earning an extended stay with the women’s Alas Pilipinas, there has been some ambiguity as to what will happen to the supposed reshuffling of the national team coaches.
“After careful thought, consideration and consultation with the PNVF (Philippine National Volleyball Federation) board, I would like to officially announce that we would like to retain coach Jorge until the SEA (Southeast Asian) Games 2025,” PNVF president Tats Suzara said in a statement released to the media.
Article continues after this advertisementSergio Veloso was touted to take the place of de Brito when his contract end with Italian Olympic mentor Angiolino Frigoni supposedly taking the coaching duties for the men’s team up to the FIVB (International Volleyball Federation) World Championships here in 2025.
READ: Jorge Edson Souza de Brito stays on as Alas Pilipinas coach
So the question arises: What will happen to Veloso now?
Article continues after this advertisement“I will be able to give you some information after the meeting with the PNVF,” Veloso told the Inquirer when asked about his fate.
Unprecedented bronze
De Brito led a hastily built women’s national team to a historic and unprecedented bronze medal finish in the previous Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Challenge Cup held here.
The women Nationals, composed of young and seasoned players led by skipper and playmaker Jia de Guzman, knocked down all of their preliminary assignments before Kazakhstan halted their winning streak but managed to still finish on the podium after defeating Australia.
That prompted the PNVF to extend de Brito’s stay even before his contract was set to expire at the end of this month.
Veloso, on the other hand, achieved only moderate success with the men’s squad, which had a lackluster stint in the recently concluded AVC Challenge Cup in Manama, Bahrain.
The Alas men’s team was swept by China and the host in their preliminary meetings before earning its lone win against Indonesia in the classification round.
The Filipinos then ended up in the tenth spot like last year after losing to Asian powerhouse Thailand, also in the classification phase.
For now, Veloso will still get to stay in the country as he also calls the shots for the Ateneo women’s volleyball team in the UAAP. INQ
