Coach Philip Blanc of France, who participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics as the coach of the Japanese national men's volleyball team, shed tears to say goodbye. He is about to go to Korea. Japan is also showing interest in foreign coaches' advance to the V-League including Blanc.

After completing his schedule for the Paris Olympics, Blanc will join Hyundai Capital, a Korean men's professional volleyball team.

Japan failed to win its first Olympic medal in 52 years as Japan suffered a painful 2-3 (25-20, 25-23, 25-27, 24-26, 15-17) upset loss to Italy in the men's volleyball quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics on the 5th. Japan overcame the group stage defeat and struggled to advance to the quarterfinals as third place in the group, but met Italy and led the set score 2-0. In the fifth set 13-14, it also succeeded in turning the tables 15-14, seeking a dramatic advance to the semifinals, but it left a deep regret.
After the match against Italy, not only coach Blanc, but also captain Yuki Ishikawa, Takahashi Lan, and Yuji Nishida shed tears.

According to Japanese media including Nikkan Sports and the Chunichi Shimbun, Blanc said after the match, "We failed to seize the opportunity that was given to us. I dreamed of advancing to the finals, but I feel sorry that I failed to achieve it. It is regrettable that this match was my last one as a coach of the Japanese national team," adding, "I am proud of the team that has been able to grow together so far. Now I am a big fan of Japan."

Born in 1960, Blanc has served as assistant coach for the Japanese men's volleyball team since 2017. As he was promoted to coach in 2022, he will lead the team until the Paris Olympics. Along with the golden generation of Japan, he ranked third in the FIVB Volleyball Federation (VNL) Volleyball Nations League in 2023, and grabbed a silver this year, jumping to second in the world rankings. Japan rushed for the Olympic medal, but failed to overcome the crisis in the fifth set of the quarterfinal match, before kneeling down.

Blanc's seven-year companionship with Japan will also come to an end. Japanese volleyball fans are saying that they want him to stay in Japan instead of going to Korea, and that failing to extend Blanc's tenure is a huge loss to Japanese volleyball.[메이저사이트](https://www.ibeautylab.co.kr/18/)

Japan's "Tokyo Sports" has shown interest in foreign coaches' moves to the V-League, including Hyundai Capital coach Blanc. Among the seven V-League men's volleyball teams, five are foreign coaches. Following Korean Air coach Tommy Tilikainen (Finland) and OK Financial Group coach Masayino Ogino (Japan), KB Insurance and Woori Card also appointed Miguel Rivera (Spain) and Mauricio Paes (Brazil), respectively. "The most attractive thing is how managers treat managers in a fully professionalized league," the media said, referring to their salary and treatment.

"If the masters gather and the V-League becomes the best league, Korean volleyball will be strong at once," he said.

Meanwhile, Blanc is scheduled to enter Korea in mid-August. Foreign coaches of various nationalities will be on the V-League stage. An unpredictable war has begun.