Piotr Gruszka - A guardian of Bartek Kurek

  • My young colleagues are eligible to make Polish volleyball even stronger than it is. I’m not worried about the future of Polish volleyball – the best player of the European Championship Piotr Gruszka said in an interview with the portal supervolley.pl. However, he did not intend to end his career.


    What does it feel like to be champion of Europe?
    Cool. Amazing. Still not quite believe it. I have already had an opportunity to taste the gold of the European Championships as a junior, but that was thirteen years ago. I did not expect that, once again, I could experience such success. We have earned this medal and I say this with deep conviction. We’ve made a good job in Turkey. Each ball was extremely important, especially in the fourth set of the finale, when we went head to head with the French. We showed in this match and throughout the tournament that we are a team, and that together we can fight for the best. We were not a complete team in Izmir, lacking a few guys because of their injuries. But that’s what sport is. I am glad that I could participate the championship, I’m very proud. For ourselves, for our loved ones and supporters we fought in Izmir to the last ball. Poland volleyball deserves to achieve such success. Today, we are the best in Europe, but for many years we were hanging around medals, winning fifth place mostly. Sometimes the missing thing was luck, condition, but there always was the will to win.


    Is this success comparable to silver in World Championships in Japan?
    As for me, it looked that I was the basic player in Izmir, I felt the atmosphere from the court. In Japan I was a reserve, played little. Medal won at the World Cup was our first success in the senior volleyball and had a special taste. We were preparing for this season very hard, and as an result of this preparation, we achieved something what none of us even took into account before the event. I am very happy and proud that I could play here. We are the champions of Europe and no one can take it from us.


    Before the season, when you once again had to change position on the court, were you not feeling fear?
    After all, I was not that far from actually not being in Izmir. If Mariusz [Wlazły] and Grzesiek Szymanski wouldn't have been injuried, I would probably not go to Euro and would not be the best player of the event. The main fact because of which it happened otherwise is the trust that coach gave me, which team gave me. Without that trust anything that I did would not work out. The beginnings were not that promising. In Gdynia, during the qualifying tournament for the world championships I did not succeed and played a little. Then there were glimpses on Wagner's Memorial. During the championships I also had not started with the right foot. I played just one set Against the French, then Kuba Jarosz replaced me. The next day, I went in the first team, the coach gave me a chance, trusted me, and believed that it makes sense, that it can succeed. I knew that only through a good game I can show that I deserve playing in this team. From the first day of training I knew that this position is assigned to me, that I will play on the attack. Hard work provided the results. I am happy above all that I managed this mentally.


    Piotr Gruszka - the best player of the European Championships. Beautiful career crowning?
    It's amazing that in the age of 32, I won the European Championship gold and was chosen MVP of the entire tournament. Tournament, which did not begin well for me. However, It's no matter how you start, it's only important how you finish it [laughs]. This is our joint success, these young boys, for whom the career has just opened. They got their first success at the major event. I wished them to move on, not to stpo, to go ahead still. They have the potential to make Polish volleyball even stronger than it is now. We got good, young players. I'm not worried about the future of Polish volleyball. Izmir has once again proved to be a happy place for me. It is a city in which I played a few months ago and won the CEV Cup.


    I know you have a good effect on Bartek Kurek.
    I worked on Bartek Kurek whole time, to prepare him mentally to stand the stress, which was just after him. He is very brave, but he's only 21 years old. It was huge responsibility and we wanted him to feel the support from all of us, to help him survive that. He had one worse moment in the final, but he went down, he was replaced by Ruciak, then returned and once again showed class.


    Who are you going to dedicate your medal to?
    My loved ones.


    What about the future? Perhaps you’ll play in the Olympics in London?
    It’s just so far from now. I don’t know what will happen and how, but for now, I enjoy the moment and play on. Shoes do not intend to hang on a peg.


    source: in polish http://www.supervolley.pl

  • Grushka and Zagumny are the real A+ class players in Poland - they have proved it this year. Not Wlazly, Winiarski or anybody else - THEY ARE!