Press release

Doha, Qatar, October 14, 2011 – Rabita Baku, under new coach Zoran Gajic, defeated VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul 25-15, 25-18, 25-9 Friday evening to win the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship gold medal in Doha, Qatar.

Rabita Baku Captain Natalya Mammadova: We're very happy that we have won this prestigious championship. We prepared ourselves very well for this match. Tactically we played very good, we served very well and were stronger in defense and reception. It was very difficult to play four matches in a row, and we hope the committee will take this in consideration for next year's championship.

Rabita Baku Coach Zoran Cajic: I was not to pleased about playing four matches in a row, especially because the Turkish team had more time to rest. I was afraid they would benifit from it, but it seemed like they were more tired than we were. My team played very good, exactly the way I wanted them to play. This victory is not only good for us, but for the whole country. Our President will be very happy.

VatifBank TTelekom Istanbul Captain Godze Sonsirma: What can I say? We didn't do anything right today, and I feel so bad about this result. I don't know what happened to us. Maybe we were too tired. This team has seven players who also play for the national team and returned just days before the start of this competition from the European Championship. We would like to congratulate Rabita Baku with the golden medal. They played a perfect match.

VatifBank TTelekom Istanbul Coach Giovanni Guidetti: First of all I would like to congratulate Rabita Baku. I cannot be angry with my players. We were only abe to train together once before the start of this competition. We weren't prepared. We weren't ready yet. The first matches we played against some weaker teams, which were very easy for us. Today we played against a very organised team, which was just too difficult for us. We have some work to do before we come back next year to show everybody what we are really capable of.