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发表于 2007-2-23 20:54:18
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Fernanda Venturini (BRA)
Utmost beauty and skill, all in one
费尔南达 文图里尼 美丽与技术集于一身
Great setters are not about "getting the job done", but also about pushing the complexities of volleyball further through creativity and risk. Yang Xilan, for example, was key to China's success because she had many offensive plays up her sleeve, depending on the adversary at hand. Japan's Kumi Nakada marveled the crowds with her unpredictable sets and the telepathic connection with her hitters. Some setters ventured into skills not usually typical of setters, like Peru's Rosa García, who had to make herself a middle blocker as well, and as such, she played around with her wing hitters in order to compensate for the lack of a central attack. Irina Parkhomchuk made her teammates all seem more powerful than they actually were by becoming an offensive weapon on the right side; in that way, she would confuse the blockers and leave her hitters with ample hitting angles. And then there was Fernanda, a setter who was not only creative, witty, and multi-skilled, but also, she was amazingly beautiful.
In her time there were a number of setters who impressed everyone with their good looks. Tatyana Grachova, the Russian who starred opposite Fernanda at the '94 World's semifinal, was a bombshell. Germany had Ines Pianka at the time. In Barcelona '92, the USA had Lori Endicott, and The Netherlands had Heleen Crielaard (at least I think that was her name). But of all of these beautiful women, Fernanda was the most accomplished one as a setter.
Aesthetics aside, Fernanda elevated the level of play within the National Team so much that veteran setter Ana Maria Richa knew that her days were numbered. For Fernanda it was only a matter of getting sufficient confidence in herself to take over the job. It helped that she had a whole generation of amazing hitters at the flick of her wrist, whereas Ana Maria Richa didn't have an offence with the same firepower. At the '89 Junior World's, I saw Fernanda play against the eventual MVP Magaly Carvajal and Regla Bell, the unstoppable lefty. But Fernanda ran a much more balanced offence than both her Cuban counterparts (they ran a 6-2), by using all five of her attackers in various twists, shoots, and fakes. When she and her teammates graduated into the Adult Team, they were eager to take over and gradually earn their place among the world's best. With the help of some members of the older generation, namely Tina and Ida, Fernanda had a myriad offensive possibilities at her disposal, such as the lightning quick slide, the "stack", and many other combinations. But even more important was the final incorporation of the back row attack as an integral part of the offence. Even though the USSR's Irina Smirnova was the world's first full-time back row hitter, she was only one of the few players in her team who did it. The USAmericans also had some early back row hitters, such as Angela Rock and Caren Kemner, but Brazil was the first team to really incorporate it into their offence. At one point, Fernanda had Ana Moser, Márcia, Hilma, Virna, Léila, and Karin anticipating a set to the back row. Fernanda quickly added elements from the the successful Brazilian men's programme that translated well into the women's game. The result was a hybrid power-and-wit game that worked well against team's on either end of that dichotomy.
Though she played intermittently in Seoul for her predecessor, Ana Maria Richa, her first real Olympics came in Barcelona. There, she led her team to a final four appearance and an eventual fourth place, which was a good final classification if one takes into account that Brazilian coach Wadson Lima didn't know what to do with so much talent. (Even in the setter position, he alternated Fernanda with Hélia "Fof鉶" Souza to change things up a bit but didn't really stir up anything new.) Another big boost for Brazilian volleyball came when Lima was replaced by Bernardo Rezende, himself a much more experienced player who brought a rigorous emphasis on versatility. He instilled in his players the idea of being dependable from almost any position on the court, not just one, which became a blessing for Fernanda. With so many free-fitting pieces to the puzzle, she could now invent new plays knowing that her hitters could hit from practically anywhere. Much like in the men's game, Fernanda could have as many as four hitters all waiting to hit from different parts of the court, and what three blockers could have a chance at covering all of that space? One of the most imaginative play combinations I have ever seen happened at the Brazil-Japan match of the '98 World's. Fernanda had Ana Flávia run the long slide down positions three and two, and once she crossed that space, Léila (a lefty) would come in for a medium-high middle set right behind Fernanda. It was truly a beautiful combination. Fernanda also set the middle combination with the back row hitter, a play that is well used in the men's game. Hilma, Ana Moser, Virna, and Léila were really good hitting this one. The middle hitter would run a quick ball in front of Fernanda (sometimes with some other combination outside or behind her), and instead she would set a medium ball over the 3-metre line for the back row attack. For men it works really well, because men have longer suspension time in the air than women, but Brazil must have practiced it in their dreams because they really got it down to perfection!
Going down the list of Fernanda's skills we can trace much of the evolution of international volleyball to what it has become today. Another example can be seen in that even though Fernanda was an extremely good blocker for a setter (it's generally not their strongest skill), the rise of power hitters such as Mireya Luis, Yevgeniya Artamonova, Sun Yue, and Tara Cross-Battle gave Bernardinho a novel idea. Why not replace Fernanda for a taller player, while simultaneously replacing the player opposite her in the back row with the backup setter? Bernardinho always seems to have had confidence in his second setter, Fof鉶, for despite her shorter stature, Fof鉶 has shown equal consistence to that of Fernanda in her setting, even though at times she didn't make the right choices. But all in all, Bernardinho had no problem subbing Fof鉶 in because she had amazing defensive skills, so in a way he saw it as subbing in a defensive player who happened to set as well. This double substitution became known as the "5-1 inversion" (5 hitters, 1 setter), a practice that many more teams are doing today.
Fernanda's other deadly skill was her serve. It seemed effortless, the way that she would raise her right arm forming a right angle, and then hit it in a way that the ball would skim the net; it wasn't powerful, but it was deceptive. And if effortlessness were her trademark, I'll always remember that bump set which she gave Ana Moser during the fourth set of the semifinal against Russia at the '94 World's... Fernanda was outside the court, beyond position 2, and rotating her body 180 degrees she bumped the ball all the way to position 4, where Ana Moser crushed it for one of a series of kills that would give them the fourth set and then the tie-break. Fernanda sent that ball in a high parabola that seemed measured with a compass and ruler, perfect, though the tranquil look on her face was actually one of infinite concentration.
One of the reasons why this individual article isn't going through Fernanda's tournament performances in chronological order (at least not as much as the others I've written) is because Fernanda never really stood out for me as one of the pushers and shovers in the emotional moments of Brazil's travails with Peru or Cuba. I remember her more for her focused and calm demeanour. She never showed any signs of nervousness, and even when Bernardinho called a time-out and gave her specific indications on what she was doing wrong, Fernanda seemed to be always composed, serene, in control. What a contrast to Ana Moser's boldness in Atlanta, Ana Paula's vengeful scorn of the Cubans at the '96 Grand Prix, Márcia throwing her towel at the Cubans, the gigantic Filo protecting her teammates against Torres's wrath, and Léila chipping at Carvajal across the net. Her cool-minded poise showed off at the end of the Brazil-Cuba semifinal at the '96 Grand Prix when Fernanda dinked a free ball pass on the second touch for match point. That took some daring! And yet she celebrated wildly but never really let herself be taken by the raw emotions that brought the Atlanta brawls all the way to Shanghai. Then again, no one wants a setter behaving like Janis Joplin...
Most of you know by now that Fernanda married Bernardinho (who used to be married to Vera Mossa... or was that a rumour?). Fernanda left volleyball for a year and was replaced by Fof鉶, who had a brief moment of difficulty believing that she had assumed the role of starting setter. Fernanda was considered the best setter in the world at the time so Fof鉶 had some really huge shoes to fill. But that is how champions are made, and in Fof鉶's first challenge, Brazil dropped several matches to weaker opponents in the first phase of the '98 Grand Prix, and yet, with perseverance and support from her teammates, she managed to pull an impressive performance right through to the title. Léila and Virna cried as soon as they realised that they had won the whole event, and dedicated their victory to Fof鉶's valiant efforts. But when Fernanda announced some months later that she wanted to return to be the starting setter, Bernardinho (remember: husband) put her back in the helm of the boat. Some Brazilians felt that it was the right thing to do, for clearly Fernanda was the best setter in the country, and the team had to include the best that they had. Others felt that Fof鉶 had dedicated almost a whole year training, touring, and getting her own style to match the offence, and that proof of it were the results at the '98 GP. In any event, I don't know who makes the decisions at that level, but for the '98 World's in Japan, Fernanda came back and Fof鉶 was relegated once again to the title of backup setter. Now, it was clear too that something was not clicking as well at that tournament. Brazil dropped its first match against Russia in a most uncharacteristic way, then lost to Cuba 3-1 in a rather "civilised" semifinal, and then again to Russia to end up in fourth place. That was not where Brazil thought it was going to end up, after coming at worst third in most of the competitions after '93. I don't know exactly what went wrong, but the only two Brazilian players who played to their highest levels were Ana Moser and Virna.
Since then, Fernanda has continued to excel in her country's Superliga, the domestic league that has been attracting more and more top quality international players. In '94 she starred with Leite Mo鏰 to take the World Club Championships in Brazil against Italy's Parmalat Matera alongside Ana Moser, Ida, Ricarda, and others. Then she won the Superliga with Leite Mo鏰 for a couple of years, and then switched over to Rexona and won the cup again for a couple of years. Her great setting has caused some young talents to come into their own rather early by seeing what they can accomplish with such an experienced artisan; such are the cases of players like Raquel, Elis鈔gela, Walewska, and Erika. Now these players are integral parts of the National Team and fortunately for them, Fof鉶 seems to have made the transition for them very easy. It's like a factory: Fernanda makes them, and Fof鉶 tests them. And if they're good enough (like they seem to be) they'll be at the top of international volleyball in no time.
Before Ana Moser retired, Fernanda was also considering returning to the National Team after an even longer absence to try out for Sydney 2000. Both she and Ana would have been the only players to represent their country in four different Olympic Games, a feat that seems incredible just by thinking of the high level that these players have had to maintain to make the Olympic roster not once, not twice, but thrice. Four times seemed even more incredible, and if it hadn't been for Ana Moser's injury she probably would've gone for it. As for Fernanda, I don't know why she desisted, but she didn't try out for the team and left Fof鉶 with the starting job for Sydney. Personally, I really want Brazil to win at least a silver medal, so that way Fof鉶 can receive the credit she deserves for having been able to make a name for herself. And even though Fernanda won't go to Sydney, I am sure that she will stay active in the Superliga, or as I heard, at least until she decides to definitely retire from volleyball to raise a family. Who knows, maybe Bernardinho will do the same thing for the same reasons, and if that happens, Brazil will have to be extremely grateful to the man who brought a new and invigorating master plan to the National Team, and to the woman who carried it out.
Origin:volleyballpic.com |
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