There is simply no more titled volleyball coach on the planet than Nikolai Karpol. And people who do not closely follow the Russian championship are sincerely surprised that the legend of Soviet sports is still in the ranks.

Amazingly, at 84 years old, the famous coach is not going to leave his beloved profession. In tandem with his grandson, Nikolai Vasilievich can lead Uralochka to the first championship title in the last 17 years.

Only a step left to take until the next gold!

Non-principal only on paper

In recent years, “Uralochka-NTMK” is quite reasonably not attributed to the contenders for the gold medals of the championship of Russia. Yes, the team regularly wins medals of other merits, but due to objective reasons, it is extremely difficult for the Ural volleyball players to claim the championship. Modest financial opportunities compared to Kazan or Kaliningrad limit the variability in the formation of the composition and force you to constantly part with the best players.

We did not expect much from the club this season either. In the offseason, the team even got a new head coach, though the name remained the same. At the helm of the Ural team stood the grandson of Nikolai Vasilyevich Mikhail Karpol. But the illustrious grandfather did not retire, remaining at the headquarters as a head coach.

But this castling, at least in official matches, is purely formal. All installations and remarks during time-outs are conveyed to the volleyball players by Nikolay Vasilievich. He does this in his traditional way: extremely emotionally and in a raised voice. Very often, the instructions develop into the signature cry of a specialist, widely known to volleyball fans. It’s hard to believe, but in early May, Karpol Sr. turned 84 years old, and he has more than enough thirst for victories and energy.

Of course, age and health do not always allow the coach to be on the court. But when he is on the bench and the team doesn’t succeed, it becomes very hot in the pauses. His emotional speeches regularly shake up the Ural volleyball players, and they add on during the meeting.

This circumstance largely allowed Uralochka to reach fifth place in the preliminary stage. But this position did not bode well for the club. Already in the semi-finals, the team got the strongest club of the regular season, Dynamo Kazan, as rivals.

It was in this series that the first high-profile sensation of the Superleague happened. The Ural squad allowed the team from Tatarstan to take only one game in two games. Because of this, the “white-blue” were forced to fight only for bronze. Prior to this, the Kazan club has only lost twice during the current season.

Nikolai Karpol / Photo: © RIA Novosti / Vladimir Pesnya

Karpol pulled the team with emotions and calmed down

In the final, Uralochka ended up against Lokomotiv, which won gold medals in the Russian championship last season. It was expected that the Kaliningrad girls would easily repeat last year’s achievement, but Karpol’s team showed from the very first match that they definitely would not give an easy life to their rivals.

In the opening confrontation, Karpol’s squad again demonstrated the ability to gather at important moments of the game. Not without Nikolai Vasilievich’s branded instructions in raised tones. As a result, the railroad women capitulated in three games, each of which ended in “more-less”.

After winning the first game, Uralochka’s volleyball players experienced a recession. They lost in two matches in a row, finding themselves in one defeat by silver. It seemed that the Ural fairy tale would end.

The fourth meeting, which dragged on for five games, did not add optimism either. In one of the sets, it took even 33 points to win. At the tie-break, Karpol’s team was on the verge of completing the fight for the title.

In the decisive segment, Lokomotiv could put an end to this series three times and win gold medals, but every time the Uralochka volleyball players found the strength to equalize the score. And then a miracle happened. From the very first attempt, Karpol’s volleyball players finished the game in their favor.

Nikolai Karpol / Photo: © RIA Novosti / Pavel Lisitsyn

Elizaveta Kotova brought the club an important victory with a chic block. At that moment, literally all the volleyball players and members of the coaching staff rushed to the court to rejoice. Only Nikolai Vasilievich remained modestly sitting in his chair. He spent emotions and energy when it was necessary to win. As well as throughout his distinguished career, which has lasted for more than 60 years. And even if Uralochka still loses in the decisive match, the feat of the legendary coach will still remain the coolest and most inexplicable event of this season.

The winners of the gold awards of the Superleague teams will be determined in the decisive fifth match. The game will be held in Kaliningrad, but Nikolai Vasilyevich will definitely pick up the right words and again give everything that is inside for the sake of the success of his girls.

Open video