It’s induction week on the Worldwide Volleyball Corridor of Fame in Holyoke, Massachusetts. The ceremony is Saturday. Six inductees will be a part of the earlier 161 gamers, coaches, directors and leaders from 25 international locations who’ve already been enshrined within the museum on the birthplace of volleyball. We’ve got tales on all six, persevering with with Shanrit Wongprasert of Thailand:
How far has volleyball are available in Thailand? Simply take a look at who did NOT make the direct entry 12-team primary draw for this previous August’s prestigious fully-loaded Seashore Professional Tour Elite16 Hamburg.
Olympic medalists Laura Ludwig, Chen Xue, Anouk Verge Depre and Joana Mader have been relegated to the qualifier. In the meantime totally half of the principle draw constituted groups from seashore royalty, Brazil and the USA. However who else made it into that primary draw wanting like get together crashers?
Thailand’s Taravadee Naraphornrapat and associate Worapeerachayakorn Kongphopsarutawadee, that’s who.
A lot of this kind of development in each the indoor and seashore variations of the game in Asia generally, and Thailand particularly, will be attributed to the impression of Shanrit Wongprasert, the primary Worldwide Volleyball Corridor of Fame inductee to ever come from the Southeast Asian nation
“I used to be so shocked as a result of I by no means thought that my volleyball voluntary work could be acknowledged by the Worldwide Volleyball Corridor of Fame,” Wongprasert mentioned.
“It’s the best honor of my life.”
Wongprasert has finished all the pieces in his life at a excessive degree.
Born on December 16, 1943, in Ban Pong District in Ratchaburi, Thailand, the 79-year-old began taking part in in a nine-man system in center college as a digger of the third row. In highschool, in a extra conventional six-player configuration, he was an out of doors hitter. Whereas on the Thai nationwide crew Wongprasert was a setter.
Having sufficiently caught the volleyball “bug,” Wongprasert stayed within the sport, changing into at first a coach, on the college, membership and eventually girls’s national-team ranges. However it’s as an administrator the place Wongprasert has made such an infinite impression.
Think about he has been anointed as Honorary Life President of not one, however two organizations, the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) and the Thailand Volleyball Affiliation (TVA).
The explanation for all of those accolades? Wongprasert in his varied roles helped develop volleyball in Thailand from a “few native championships a 12 months, with few spectators, and few sponsors, to change into THE sport with loads of championships greater than 320 days a 12 months,” he identified.
These competitions begin with the under-12 age cohort all the best way as much as skilled leagues, in addition to continental and world degree with capability crowds at each flip.
Wongprasert’s administrative profession started because the secretary basic of the TVA for 30 years upon the completion of his teaching profession. In that point, he served with six presidents, however he was the one fixed that they may all depend on. His work in Thailand was acknowledged by the worldwide movers and shakers early on, and in 1992 the FIVB named him to its board of administration. In the meantime, if that was not sufficient, along with his volunteer work with the TVA and the FIVB, Wongprasert served because the secretary basic and vice chairman of the AVC.
Maybe Wongprasert’s greatest contribution was his generosity in sharing his huge information with different Asian confederations, serving to them with their applications, each in nationwide crew growth, and the conduction of zonal and continental championships. His distinctive capacity to collaborate and coordinate with different federations facilitated the unfold of zonal and continental championships.
4 years in the past, when he was 75, Wongprasert determined to step away from all of his duties. However he couldn’t reject the overtures of the AVC president who named Wongprasert to the chief director place, in addition to that aforementioned Honorary Life President place.
In a profession that has not been wanting accomplishments, in 2019, Wongprasert was awarded the Olympic Council of Asia’s Advantage Award for his excellent service to the event of sports activities in Asia.
Wongprasert has left the volleyball in glorious form in his native nation.
“I’ve confidence that the long-term everlasting undertaking which I created for volleyball in Thailand will repeatedly develop volleyball in Thailand to the continental and world degree, Wongprasert mentioned.”
Which will change into obvious as quickly because the Olympics in Paris subsequent July. Whereas Thailand’s indoor groups have by no means certified for an Olympic Video games, it’s not out of the realm of chance that the aforementioned Taravadee Naraphornrapat and associate Worapeerachayakorn Kongphopsarutawadee might rep the nation on the sand in Paris.
That may be one thing and definitely a coda to the legacy of Shanrit Wongprasert.
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Search for another story on Olympic gold medalist and four-time Olympian Phil Dalhausser (United States, seashore male participant).
ICYMI
Sunday: Silvano Prandi of Italy
Monday: Katsutoshi Nekoda of Japan
Tuesday: Yumilka Ruiz of Cuba
Wednesday: Larisa of Brazil
Click on right here for ticket data and if you happen to received’t be on the ceremonies they’ll be streamed at IVHF.org