Monday’s battle for BALFIN Group’s Volleyball Championship trophy was one for the books, with Mane TCI triumphing over 5 times champion, Neptun. What at first seemed to be another Neptun undisputed win, turned out to be a surprising but well deserved prevail from Mane TCI. The players delivered a fantastic match that kept the viewers at their toes. On the other hand, the rivalry fueled passionate cheers and unmatched energy from the supportive fans of each team.
Neptun won the first two sets (15-25; 19-25), but Mane TCI quickly showed the determination to overturn the result, winning the last three sets by putting up a strong fight (25-20; 25-13; 15-11).
In this year’s edition, 12 teams and 179 players participated from BALFIN Group companies, all of them displaying impeccable teamwork, effort and grit. At the end of the match, before officially celebrating the winning team, the referee, Artan Pogoni, a well-known champion coach and BALFIN’s longtime partner in the organization of BALFIN Volley, awarded the most distinguished players and teams, and applauded all the participants and organizers for their hard work. This year’s novelty is that these two teams will play against the two finalist teams of the Kosovar tournament in September in Tirana, to announce the champion of BALFIN International Championship 2021.
Eugesta Jazi, captain of Mane TCI, who was also awarded as the best female player of the tournament, expressed her enthusiasm for her team’s achievement: “We are very happy for the deserved victory! From the previous years’ experience, we have stood out as a charming, combative and cooperative team, with team spirit being our strongest point. Once we realized this, we focused on improving our technical skills. The whole team has sacrificed a lot by regularly coming to training, and having a single goal in mind, to make a difference. Although for many this was impossible, from the very beginning our only goal was victory. We knew each other very well, everyone’s abilities but above all, we knew our limits, we had no limits!”.
Blendi Dashi, captain of Neptun, tried to keep his teammates’ morale high: “Losing is part of the game. If we never lose, we are never really being tested and we are not forced to grow up. See you again in the next championship”.
During the awarding of the cup to the champion team, Agim Fjolla, Director of Communication at BALFIN Group said: “Congratulations to all participants of the 12 teams, who restored our hope in this first championship after the pandemic. Even BALFIN Volley was like Euro 2020, which was postponed by a year. The Volleyball Championship is one of the main social activities of BALFIN Group that has massive participation, not only to play but also to cheer on colleagues. Congratulations to the winning team!”
Keeping morale high among employees is a crucial component in the success of any organization, and employee satisfaction and wellness is a growing priority of BALFIN Group. Sports activities promote teamwork and foster a sense of connectivity between employees. This unified front has been the purpose of BALFIN’s Volleyball Championship since the very beginning. BALFIN Group seeks the highest standard in the arrangement of this championship, where participants reinforce the values of fair play, solidarity and team spirit, and will continue to do so in the years to come, influencing corporate culture in the region.
