Bialokoz and Batrane: Year in review

After compeating in so many different competitors and performing at high levels we asked what the highlight of 2023 has been for the pair.

"In terms of tournaments, a highlight would have to be the Royal Championships of the Queen and King of the Court in Rotterdam. We’ve been lucky enough to play four Queen and King of the Court events this year and they always put on a really good event." 

"It’s something slightly different, especially with the Skybox stadiums, music and fast-paced format". 

"We also made the semis and ended up coming 6th whilst being able to showcase some of our best volleyball".

With experiancing different formats such as king of the court and being part of the Beach Pro Tour Futures competitons the pair have learnt a lot and discoved things they can take into 2024.

"I think this season was a tough one for us, so a lot of the learning came from trying to work out the things that we can do off the court, which we can then carry over onto the court". 

"As with everything there is always going to be more we can explore so that’s just going to be something we develop next year".

With 2024 on the horizon the pair have their eyes set on what they want to acheive in the new year.

"I think one of the aims is to make more main draws and push on deeper into the tournament at the challenger level".

"We would love to potentially qualify for a European championship as well so we can experience that level of Volleyball". 

"Saying that the overarching aim will be more focused on the individual performances and being able to maintain and push the level we have found too rarely this year".

With 2024 being an exciting year for Volleyball with the Olympic Games the pair spoke about what they are looking forward to. 

"We are excited to have the chance to compete again it’s going to be a somewhat frantic start to the season what with Olympic qualification coming at the beginning of the year. As well as the possibilities for other tournaments".

"Saying that there is a lot of work that needs to and will be done until we get to that point". 

"We would love an international tournament on home sand so that’s hopefully not too far down the pipeline".

With these aims and hopes for the new year we also asked the pair where they hope to be at the end of 2024.

"This time next year we hope to have medalled at a challenger event".

"Next year the focus will be being able to maintain a consistently high level over a tournament then hopefully the results will take care of themselves".

Each year comes with its own challenges and Issa and Freddie spoke about the battles they had to overcome.

"Whilst we found some success elsewhere, we struggled whilst playing challenger qualifiers". 

"They can be pretty brutal with them being single elimination, but we were glad to get over the line in the last tournament of the year in the Philippines". 

"That has come off the back of us taking a bigger focus on what we were and what we could be doing on and especially off the court".

With more events happening next year and Issa and Freddie now ranking 84th in the world there will be more opportunities for the pair to progress and claim those elusive spots on the podium in 2024 with a massive range of opportunities for the pair.