Wilfredo León

Wilfredo León Venero (born 31 July 1993) is a Cuban–Polish professional volleyball player. He was a member of the Cuba national team from 2007 to 2012, and is a current member of the Poland national team and Sir Safety Perugia. León was a silver medallist at the 2010 World Championship, and a two–time NORCECA Champion (2009, 2011).

Wilfredo León
Personal information
Full nameWilfredo León Venero
NicknameLeo
NationalityCuban
Polish
Born (1993-07-31) 31 July 1993
Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
Height2.02 m (6 ft 8 in)
Weight96 kg (212 lb)
Spike380 cm (150 in)
Block346 cm (136 in)
Volleyball information
PositionOutside hitter
Current teamSir Safety Perugia
Number9
Career
YearsTeams
2005–2010Capitalinos
2010–2013Orientales de Santiago
2014–2018Zenit Kazan
2015Al Rayyan
2016Al Rayyan
2018–Sir Safety Perugia
National team
2007–2012 Cuba
2019– Poland
Honours
Men's volleyball
Representing  Cuba
FIVB World Championship
Silver medal – second place2010 Italy
FIVB World Grand Champions Cup
Silver medal – second place2009 Japan
FIVB World League
Bronze medal – third place2012 Sofia
Pan American Games
Silver medal – second place2011 Guadalajara
NORCECA Championship
Gold medal – first place2009 Puerto Rico
Gold medal – first place2011 Puerto Rico
Representing  Poland
FIVB World Cup
Silver medal – second place2019 Japan
FIVB Nations League
Gold medal – first place2023 Gdańsk
Silver medal – second place2021 Rimini
CEV European Championship
Gold medal – first place2023 Italy/Bulgaria/North Macedonia/Israel
Bronze medal – third place2019 Belgium/France/Netherlands/Slovenia
Bronze medal – third place2021 Poland/Czechia/Estonia/Finland

Considered by many as one of a kind, he led Cuba to the silver medal at the 2010 World Championship held in Italy, alongside Yoandy Leal and Robertlandy Simon. He is considered one of the leaders of the "Generation of Miracle" of Cuban volleyball by many experts.[1] León is considered one of the best volleyball players worldwide.

Personal life

León was born in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba on July 31, 1993. He is the son of Wilfredo León Hechavarría and Alina Venero Boza (former volleyball player). He studied at Escuela Nacional del Voleibol Cubano. León lived in Poland for a while with his Polish girlfriend.[2] On June 24, 2016, he married Małgorzata (born Gronkowska). On May 13, 2017, their daughter Natalia was born.

Career

León started to play when he was seven. His first coach was his mother, Alina. León debuted in the Cuban national team on May 24, 2008, in Düsseldorf, aged 14 years and 10 months.[3] He won the title of Best Receiver at World League 2009. On July 31, 2009, he won a silver medal in the World U21 Championship (after losing the final against Brazil). In 2009, the Cuban national team, with Leon, won the title of NORCECA Champion (and three individual awards), and repeated this success in 2011. After losing the final against Brazil, Cuba won a silver medal at the 2010 World Championship. He was the youngest captain of the national team (he was 17). In 2012, he won the bronze medal at the World League.

In 2013, León left Cuba to play in a club outside of his homeland,[4] losing the possibility of playing for the Cuban national team.[5] He joined Russian club Zenit Kazan in 2014, where he won multiple CEV Champions League titles, national leagues, and cups. He also played part-time with Qatar club Al Rayyan in 2015 and 2016. In September 2018, León joined Italian team SIR Safety Perugia.

On July 14, 2015, León received Polish citizenship, and five years later he became fully eligible to play for the Polish national volleyball team.[6]

Honours

Club
  • Domestic
    • 2008–09 Cuban Championship, with Capitalinos
    • 2009–10 Cuban Championship, with Capitalinos
    • 2010–11 Cuban Championship, with Orientales de Santiago
    • 2014–15 Russian Cup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2014–15 Russian Championship, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2015–16 Russian SuperCup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2015–16 Russian Cup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2015–16 Russian Championship, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2016–17 Russian SuperCup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2016–17 Russian Cup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2016–17 Russian Championship, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2017–18 Russian SuperCup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2017–18 Russian Cup, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2017–18 Russian Championship, with Zenit Kazan
    • 2018–19 Italian Cup, with Sir Safety Perugia
    • 2019–20 Italian SuperCup, with Sir Safety Perugia
    • 2020–21 Italian SuperCup, with Sir Safety Perugia
    • 2021–22 Italian Cup, with Sir Safety Perugia
    • 2022–23 Italian SuperCup, with Sir Safety Perugia

Individual awards

Record
  • 138 km/h serve speed[7]

References
  1. Poggi, Alessandro (2020-04-18). "Wilfredo Leon exclusive! Cuba forged my character, in Poland I found love, Italy is my new challenge". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  2. "POL M: Leon and Diaz in Rzeszów". World of Volley. 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  3. "Czternastolatek w kadrze Kuby na LŚ!" [Fourteen-year-old in Kuba's team at LŚ!] (in Polish). Wirtualna Polska Media. 2008-05-06. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  4. Futterman, Matthew (2021-08-02). "How a Cuban Émigré Became a Polish Volleyball God". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
  5. "Cuba Expels Wilfredo Leon". Volleywood. 2013-04-28. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  6. "Wilfredo Leon z polskim obywatelstwem" [Wilfredo Leon with Polish citizenship] (in Polish). Wirtualna Polska Media. 2015-07-15. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  7. "Wilfredo León bate récord de velocidad en el saque: 138 km / h". Cuba Si (in Spanish). 2020-10-21. Retrieved 2021-05-30.
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