A "volleyball warrior" from Bahrain is dreaming of a Korean dream. The main character is Mohammed Yakub (31, Bahrain), an outside heater of KB Insurance, a men's professional volleyball team.
During the All-Star break in early January, Yakub wore a KB Insurance uniform as a substitute for the Asian quarter. When KB Insurance chose him, volleyball officials and fans wondered. It was because he was a Bahraini player, not from an Asian volleyball powerhouse such as Iran, China or Japan.
Above all, he was too short. Most of the foreign players in Korea are over 2 meters tall or close to each other. However, Yakub was only 186 centimeters tall. He is much shorter than Korean strikers.
However, his concern about Yakub has turned into a compliment. After joining KB Insurance, he has been playing the role of a housekeeper. He throws his opponent's powerful serve and spike to help his team. He recovers his short stature with outstanding jumps in attack as well, contributing to his team. It seems as if he is watching KBSN commentator Seok Jin-wook, who was called a "volleyball warrior" when he was active.
Yakub is a "pearl in the mud." In May last year, he submitted an application for an Asian quarter tryout on Jeju Island, only to be shunned by all clubs. As for an Asian quarter tryout, only the top 30 players from each club are invited to Korea through a survey on their preferences. As he failed to make it to the top 30, he failed to enter Korea.
However, the team came to an end by chance. KB Insurance tried to appoint Ishanaye Ramirez (current men's volleyball team coach) as its new head coach late last year. At the time, Ramirez recommended Jakub as the new Asian quarter player. Ramirez, who once led Bahrain's national team, believed that Jakub, who coached the team at the time, would work well in the V-League.
Ramirez failed to come to KB Insurance due to controversy over his dual role as a member of the national team. However, the club kept paying attention to Jakub and decided to trust him. The result was a huge success. The short player, who had never even been invited to a tryout, has become a foreign player attracting the most attention in the V-League.
Since his debut in a match against OK Savings Bank on June 16, he has scored 98 points in eight V-League matches, posted a 50.60 percent attack rate and 30.36 percent receiving efficiency. Since joining the team, KB Insurance has been on a seven-game winning streak. The team that was in the middle of the league since the opening of the season is already approaching the second place.
Yakub enjoys life in Korea. He has played in the Bahrain League since he became a professional player. It is his first time to leave Bahrain and play in an overseas league. Everything is a new and fresh experience. Although there are some obstacles such as food, he is coping well with his unique optimistic personality. 먹튀검증
He even had a special experience in the Woori Card exhibition held at Kyungmin University Gymnasium on the 19th. It was the first time for his family, including his wife and daughter, to experience it. In the Bahrain League, a wife and daughter have never visited the stadium. Even in Bahrain, a relatively free atmosphere among Islamic countries, it is still unfamiliar for women to go to sports stadiums.
In Korea, however, his wife and daughter were able to sit in the audience and cheer for him as much as they wanted. He even held the microphone and shouted out loud cheers. "I didn't pay much attention to concentrate on the game," he said, but his face was full of laughter.
Yakub's dream is to play in Korea for a long time. "Korea is a new country for me. I want to grow up here," he said. "I like the V-League's fierce competition, and I'm also happy that male and female fans are enthusiastically cheering for him." He added, "I have no regrets about my short stature. Instead, I will make up for my short stature by banking on my high jumps and mental control."
When he introduced the sports saying, "Volleyball is done with the heart, not the kidney," Jakub laughed for a long time. "I think that's the right thing for me," he said. "I'll keep that in mind and do my best on the court from now on."