MANILA, Philippines – Alas Pilipinas head coach Jorge Souza de Brito will have to unpack his bags after all at the conclusion of the 2024 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Challenge Cup.
The Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), which earlier said it would replace the Brazilian mentor when his contract expires on June 30, has backtracked, now saying it wants De Brito to coach the Alas women’s team for a longer haul after a historic breakthrough in the Challenge Cup semifinal.
“Coach Jorge coached the country to a first-ever semifinals stint in any AVC or Asian level competition. That’s historic for Philippine volleyball,” PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said in a release on Monday, May 27.
“Because of that, there’s no reason that we’ll let him go.”
Prior to this statement, De Brito – a 1992 Olympic gold medalist as a volleyball player for Brazil – had been coaching on borrowed time, as the ongoing Challenge Cup would have been his last hurrah apart from a handful of friendly matches before June 30.
In the previous PNVF press release, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) had already set in motion an appointment of an Italian coach to the Philippines, while De Brito has been assigned to lead Chinese Taipei.
Alas’ 4-0 Challenge Cup start, however, was apparently enough proof for the PNVF to backtrack on its initial decision as the Philippines rose seven spots in the world rankings from No. 62 to 55. The federation is now “appealing” that De Brito stay with the country he has led since 2021.
“We’ve always trusted Coach Jorge and Alas Pilipinas’s historic accomplishment in this AVC Challenge Cup is testament to his world-class skills as coach,” Suzara said. – Rappler.com