Mariusz Vlazuly is my favorite volleyball player. My best. My most popular player. That's for sure. That's for sure.
I first learned about him at the World Championships held in Japan in 2008. There was a player in Poland who was jumping around a lot, firing off sharp spikes and serves, and scoring a lot of points. That was Vlaszły. He was just so cool. When he spiked, he looked like a wild beast about to pounce on its prey, which was incredibly cool. And he had a handsome face too (lol).
Vlaadzwi has had an impressive record both with his country and club.
First, he won the U21 World Championships in 2003 as a member of the national team. He then joined the senior national team in 2005, and made a major contribution to winning the silver medal at the World Championships the following year in 2006. Two years later, in 2008, he also participated in the Beijing Olympics. After that, he was on and off the national team, and in 2011 he left the national team completely, but in 2014 he made a long-awaited comeback and performed brilliantly at the World Championships held in his home country, playing a key role in winning the first gold medal in 40 years. He was also awarded MVP individually at this tournament. He then announced his retirement from the national team.
He played for the prestigious Polish club Skra Belchatow for 17 years from his professional debut in 2003 until 2020. He was also the captain from 2008. He is probably the only top professional player in Europe who has stayed with the same club for such a long time. During this time, he has won the league nine times (including seven consecutive wins from 2005 to 2011), won the Polish Cup seven times, and finished runner-up and third in the European Champions League twice. He was the face of Skra in both name and reality, but yesterday it was officially announced that he will be moving to Gdansk next season.
Vlazuli's defining feature is his sharp spikes and serves from high jumps. He is only 194cm tall, which makes him small for a volleyball player, especially for an opposite player. However, he can reach a maximum height of 360cm, which is comparable to players in the 2-meter class, and is often taller than them. When blocking, you often see him reach out further than the middle player next to him. He also weighs only 80kg and is slim, but the balls he hits using his whole body are incredibly powerful. His serves consistently exceed 120km/h. It's truly mesmerizing to watch. Beautiful.
Thinking about it, he might be a similar type of player to Japan's Nishida. Well, he's about 10cm shorter than Vlazwi. I'd like to see them fight before Vlazwi retires. Nishida, I hope you go to the Polish league (laughs).
Although it is not retirement, I was honestly surprised by the news of Vlazuli's transfer from Scura. However, what surprised me was that it was not a transfer, but rather that it was not retirement (he is 37 years old this year). Vlazuli was a rare European player who had been with Scura Bełhatov since he became a professional, so I thought that quitting Scura meant retiring. I thought he would not play for another club. So when I heard this news, I honestly thought, "It's not retirement."
Still, I'm sad to see him leave Skura. It's no exaggeration to say that I've been supporting Skura for so many years because he was there. However, I'm a fan of Vlazuli and I respect his play and his humanity, so I'll continue to support him no matter which team he goes to.
Mariusz Wlazły
Born August 4, 1983 (36 years old)
From Wielun, Poland
Height: 194 cm
Weight: 80kg
Highest point reached: 360cm
Position: Opposite
Jersey number: 2 (10 for the national team)
Club
2003-20 Skra Beukhatov
2020 - Trefle Gdansk
Representative career
2005-2014
English 
Japanese