Such an interesting move Lukas but we still support you!
Slovakia men’s national team suffered a major setback after it was announced that their star wing-spiker Lukas Divis – who currently plays for Lokomotiv NOVOSIBIRSK – just switched allegiance after obtaining Russian citizenship.
The 28-year old spiker born in Zilina totaled 171 caps with the Slovak national team throughout his career including three appearances in the Final Round of the European Championship. Divis was among the players who anchored Slovakia to a stellar fifth place in 2011 as the EuroVolley was held in the Czech Republic and Austria, as well as to the country’s second title in the CEV Volleyball European League that same year.
“That was a surprise for us but in the end we decided to comply with his request,” says the President of the Slovak Volleyball Federation and CEV Board member Lubor Halanda. “This is a big loss for us because he played a very important role in our national team. However, we have some other talented players who will get the chance to play now. We wish him the best of luck for the remainder of his career.”
Divis was named Slovakia’s Volleyball Player of the Year in 2012 and in March 2013 he won Europe’s most prestigious club competition, the CEV Volleyball Champions League, as Lokomotiv NOVOSIBIRSK seized the day at the Finals in Omsk. Divis’ last game with the Slovak national team dates back to January 5 when Slovakia lost to Finland in the last round of qualifications for the 2014 FIVB Volleyball World Championship.
A source mentioned that he married a Russian earlier this year which made the transition easier.
Take note, being a player with a Russian passport is beneficial to any athlete who plats in the Russian League. How? Well, you tend to get paid more according to a source. Also, Lukas can now play for the Russian National Team if he’s needed.
In case you didn’t know, Olympian Igor Yudin has done the same thing last year. He gave up his Australian passport to become a Russian national.