RAMON ‘Tats’ Suzara is the newly-elected president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC).
LOOK:
The Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) chief garnered 48 out of 63 votes, including 20 proxy votes, to easily beat Qatar’s Ali Ghanem M A Al-Kuwari in the 25th AVC General Assembly, Congress and Election at the Grand Fourwings Convention Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.
Suzara becomes the ninth AVC president and second Filipino to hold the prestigious position after Nemesio Yabut Sr. from 1976 to 1979.
A four-year term awaits Suzara, meaning he will be AVC president when he oversees the county's hosting of next year’s 2025 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship.
Suzara succeeds Indonesia's Rita Subowo, the AVC's first-ever female president, who was elected unanimously during the pandemic concurrent to her term as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
“The greatest boost shall be derived from the region’s grand tradition and rich history in volleyball. The legacy of inspiring wisdom and nurturing leadership of previous administrations will be carried on, even as the AVC story continues to unfold," said Suzara.
“I thanked everyone who have trusted me and as president, my work has just begun. Thank you very much my AVC family, to Mr. Ali (Ghanem Al-Kuwari), we will always be family."
FIVB president Ary Graça, who awarded Suzara and the PNVF hosting rights to next year's men's world tilt, heaped praise on the new AVC president's 'professionalism' to lead Asia's continuous ascent in world volleyball for the next four years.
"He is going to be a good president because Mr. Suzara is very professional for our sport,” Graça said.
Completing the new AVC executive board under Suzara's leadership are executive vice president Mohamed Latheef (Maldives), secretary-general Hugh Graham (Cook Islands), treasurer Marina Tsui (Hong Kong) and internal auditor Hasan Alfransiny (Bahrain).
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
