Iran's volleyball head coach Velasco quits

Tehran, Feb 8 (IANS): Julio Velasco stepped down as the head coach of Iranian national volleyball team on Saturday.

Velasco, who was appointed in 2011, made the decision after Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner asked him to helm the South American team, reports Xinhua.

“Velasco has improved Iranian volleyball over the past few years. We agreed with his request to keep our relationship good. We are going to find a good replacement for him. We cannot disclose the name of our candidate at the moment,” Iranian Volleyball Federation official Mohammad-Reza Davarzani said.

Under the tutelage of Velasco, Iran claimed the Asian Volleyball Championship in 2011 and 2013. Velasco, whose coaching career spans more than three decades, has also coached Italy’s men’s and women’s teams as well as the men’s teams from Spain and Czech Republic.

Poland coach Andrea Anastasi is a top candidate to replace Velasco.