Cincinnati, USA, May 20, 2016 – Marketa Slukova has spoken to FIVB TV about her determination to reach the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games and about her new partnership with Barbara Hermannova.
The 27-year-old Slukova split from her long-time teammate Kristyna Kolocova following the Netherlands 2015 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships. The pair had played together since their school days and had won two FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour gold medals and reached the quarterfinals of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
“We struggled from the start of our preparation on and we had a lot of differences and arguments,” Slukova said.
“We had a great Olympics and had a great fifth place, but I didn’t just want to be at the Olympics Games. For me it wasn’t worth it. So I told her that I wasn’t happy how we were playing and so I moved on.”
Slukova then teamed up with Hermannova and they won gold at the 2015 Antalya Open, their fifth World Tour event as a duo.
They are currently outside the top 17 places in the FIVB Olympic Rankings that qualify automatically for Rio 2016, but they have a chance to reach Rio 2016 via the CEV Continental Cup which will take place in Stavanger from June 22-26.
“She is a fighter and we are on the same level emotionally and I think we have a big potential,” Slukova said. “We had to make some adjustments because we were both blockers, but now we are able to switch roles and that gives you new motivation to learn.
“She is two years younger than me and I feel a new level of energy and 2016 has been great for our team.
“Right now we have a chance to fight for a spot at Rio but we have to go through the Continental Cup because we started very late, in August last year and we knew we didn’t have much time and that we would need top results. But so long as there is a chance we are going to go for it.”