Lausanne, Switzerland, June 14, 2016 – Iran kick off the FIVB World League on Friday with a massive clash against Brazil in Rio de Janeiro.
They’ll be keen to get used to the place as they will also be in Rio for the Olympic Games in August, their first appearance at this world event.
Iran are not just making up the numbers. In the last few years, the team have been major players in men’s volleyball, finishing sixth in the 2014 FIVB World Championship and fourth in the World League in the same year.
They were champions of Asia in 2011 and 2013 and runners-up in 2009 and 2015 (both times to Japan).
This year, they have already beaten world champions Poland twice.
As well as being a great team, they have great individual players, and perhaps none more so than setter and captain Saeid Marouf and middle blocker Seyed Mohammad Mousavi.
Their achievements speak for themselves. Mousavi was Best Middle Blocker at the 2015 World Cup and in the recent World Olympic Qualification Tournament, while Marouf is regarded by many as the best setter in men’s volleyball and was named MVP at the 2013 Asian Championship, Best Setter in the 2014 World League and Iranian Sportsman of the Year in 2015.
The Iran Volleyball Federation is helping to show just how great their players are with some slick video PR, here featuring Marouf and Mousavi.