Coach says team is well-prepared for tournament which will be hosted in Belize

The competition begins next week Saturday at the Saint Catherine Academy Multi-Purpose Center on Marine Parade. Belize as hosts faces a tough road to try to reach the top two teams and advance to the Continental Round. The Association has hired Cuban coach Delio Arruebarrena to oversee preparation of the team. He spoke to us about their chances.

Delio Arruebarrena, Coach, Belize Men’s Volleyball Team, (Translated by Allan Sharp)

Delio Arruebarrena

“The preparation has been very good; the only thing that we would have needed is more international practice matches, which is what is going to allow us to do what we are supposed to do, to reach those goals. We have done some preparation and we went to the Copa Cancun, and also doing the Under-23 Central American championship, that it allowed our team to develop and hopefully do well in this competition.”

Arruebarrena is joined by former national team players turned coaches Albert Humes and Wallace Tillett and the team is managed by Ben Ramos of Orange Walk. Belize’s first match following the opening ceremonies on Saturday September twenty-fourth is against El Salvador; arch-nemesis Guatemala is next on Sunday the twenty-fifth, followed by, in order: Panama, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Honduras, with a rest day on Thursday. Each Belize game takes place at seven-thirty in the evening and will be televised and streamed on Youtube. Prices to enter the SCA Center are ten dollars; five for children under twelve. The participating teams begin arriving next Thursday, September twenty-second.