Wills severs ties with volleyball federation

National volleyball coach Ian Wills yesterday confirmed that he had severed ties both coaching-wise and administratively with the Guyana Volleyball Federation (GVF).

According to Wills, the reason for his decision was because he was not “comfortable” with the direction the federation was heading.

The former national player and ex-Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the GVF, told Stabroek Sport during an exclusive interview yesterday that he was no longer a part of the current administration after admitting that he was not pleased with the course of the federation as it relates to the progression of the sport.

 Ian Wills
Ian Wills

Wills, who recently tendered his resignation said: “I’m no longer a part of the federation because I’m not comfortable with the way things are done. Some of the things are not done according to procedure and with me being the person who usually faces with the media and public, I think it could hurt my character.”

Although Wills did not get too much into details regarding his reasons for leaving the GVF, he admitted that issues such as selection of teams, preparation ahead of tournaments and other issues were among some of the reasons which prompted his departure.

Speaking about the Under-23 tourney recently held in Colombia which was supposed to be attended a strong Guyana side, Wills, who was appointed assistant national coach of that team, explained that numerous issues plagued the team ahead of the competition, dubbing the entire situation a “logistical mess.”

“The teams who were preparing for the U23 Colombia tournament began preparing two months before the competition when they knew about the tournament many months before,” he said.

He also added that apart from poor preparations leading up to the tournament, there was no manager appointed to the team despite him requesting one on a consistent basis.

The former GVF PRO said while he has detached himself from the federation, he remains committed to the Demerara Volleyball Association (DVA) where he currently sits as Vice-President, adding that he has no issues with working with the GVF in the future, but under a different regime.

Efforts to get a reaction from officials of the Guyana Volleyball Federation yesterday proved futile.