CAZOVA Women's Champs serves off tomorrow

Jamaica will continue its quest for a place in the 2018 World Championship of Indoor Volleyball when it hosts the CAZOVA Senior Women Championships at the National Indoor Sports Centre in Kingston, starting tomorrow until July 31.

Eight Caribbean teams will vie for two spots in the second round of next year's World Championship Qualifications. The teams include Jamaica, The Bahamas, Curacao, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and the US Virgin Islands.

"The top two will move on to the next round in Trinidad and Tobago in October. After scouting and trials, the coaching staff has selected the final 12 players for the tournament. We hope the team will do the nation proud," president of the Jamaica Volleyball Association (JaVA) Rudolph Speid said during the championships' launch yesterday.

IMPROVE ECONOMY

Denzil Wilks, general manager of the Sports Development Foundation (SDF), a sponsor of local volleyball, said that sports can be used to improve the economy.

"Sports tourism is imperative. Sports is fundamental to the society. I am sure STATIN (the Statistical Institute of Jamaica) and BOJ (Bank of Jamaica) will advise us on the contribution of sports to the economy," Wilks said.

"The SDF will continue to work with sports in Jamaica. We have put in the facilities to reach the talent. We are putting in more multipurpose facilities that should be used," he encouraged.

He also credited JaVA for what he describes as a professional approach to the sport.

"Volleyball is moving forward with administration and playing. I like what I'm seeing. Sports is a contribution to tourism. JaVA must ensure that the planning is in place for the future," he concluded.

Jamaica's senior women's team captain Simone Asque said that the team is improving and would do well in the championships.

"I think we will do very well. We have been training hard, and the coaches are doing their jobs. We want to do justice at home and make the country proud," Asque said.

The Jamaica team is: Simone Asque, Kiara King, Cherice Thompson, Akino Jones, Danaisha Moss, Sashalee Wallen, Kai Wright, Renae Temple, Tasha-Gaye Richards, Breanna Atkinson, Tahleia Bishop, and Sashalee Thomas.