Julio Velasco is considered one of the best volleyball coaches of all time but also has a Lazio connection.
He was born in La Plata, Argentina, on February 9, 1952. He has an interesting background. His father was Peruvian and his mother an Argentine of English origin, in fact she was an English teacher.
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Julio joined the University of La Plata to study Philosophy but left his hometown after just six exams and moved to Buenos Aires. Velasco claimed he was more inconspicuous in the capital. These were the years of the military dictatorship and the "desaparecidos" and as president of the student committee and militant communist he had seen several of his companions, including his younger brother, literally disappear as was common at the time. He started to work in Baires, as a cleaner, estate agent, teacher but also as a volleyball coach. The latter, after graduating from the National Institution of Physical Education, then became his career. And what a career.
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He started in 1979 at Ferro Carril Oeste in the capital where he won four consecutive league titles. In 1982 he was assistant coach for the Argentine national team who won bronze at their home World Championships.
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In 1983 he came to Europe and coached Volley Club Jesi in Italy. The Marchigiani were in the second tier and narrowly missed promotion.
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In 1985 he joined Panini Modena in the top tier and had his first real successes; four consecutive league titles, 3 Coppa Italias and a Cup Winners Cup plus reaching three consecutive European Cup finals.
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In 1989 he became the Italian national team coach. He won an Olympic Silver, 2 World Championships, 3 European Championships and a silver, 5 World Leagues plus a Grand Champions Cup and a World Top Four.
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In 1997-98 he was the Italian national female coach. He won the Mediterranean Games.
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In 2001-03 he was Czech Republic coach and then returned to club volleyball; Piacenza, Modena and Monza.
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In 2008-11 he was Spanish coach and then 2011-14 head coach of Iran. With Iran he won the Asian Cup in 2011 and 2013 and played a good World League in 2013 even defeating Italy. Iran became a respected volleyball nation.
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In 2014 he became head coach of his homeland team Argentina. In 2014 he won the Pan American Games. He was in charge for four years before returning to Modena at club level for a season and won the Italian Supercoppa.
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In June 2019 he was nominated technical director of the Italian volleyball youth sector. He held the job for four years in which the Italian youth teams won numerous medals in international competitions.
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In 2024 he became head coach of the Italian Women's team again, 25 years after his first experience. He immediately won the Volleyball Nations League and then took part in the 2024 Paris Olympics, winning a first historic Olympic gold medal for Italian volleyball. He is staying on for Los Angeles 2028 too.
And Lazio? In 1998 at the peak of his success and popularity Velasco was called by ambitious Lazio president Sergio Cragnotti to take on the role of general director. Velasco accepted and signed a two-year contract. After the first year however, he asked to leave. In 2000 he was even very briefly under contract with Inter but only for a couple of months.
He described his experience with the Biancocelesti as a positive and interesting one but he realised he missed the technical and daily training with the players too much to be a director. For Lazio too it was a pleasure to have such a charismatic and cultured man of sport representing the club. A pity it did not last long.
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So he went back to what he is best at, teaching volleyball and winning trophies.
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