Laurent Tillie: For Japan's new men's volleyball coach, 'experience' is everything

For Laurent Tillie and the Japan Volleyball Association, it was a no-brainer.

“Who wouldn’t want this job?” Tillie said during a press conference on Monday (2 December), when he was unveiled as the new men’s national coach of Japan for LA2028.

“I want to thank the JVA and Osaka Bluteon for making this possible.

“I have tremendous high hopes for the future of Japanese volleyball.”

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Laurent Tillie: Paris heartbreak 'necessary' for Japan

Tillie, who led his native France to a historic gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, takes over from compatriot Philippe Blain with unanimous backing of the JVA board.

Blain took Japan to No. 2 in the world rankings, leading the team to silver in the Volleyball Nations League ahead of Paris 2024. He had Japanese fans thinking of their first Olympic medal in 52 years in men’s volleyball.

But in the quarter-finals against Italy at the Games, Japan, up 2-0, failed to pounce on three match points before stunningly dropping three straight sets and crashing out big-time.

Amid sky-high expectations, the match was the single most watched Olympic event in Japan during Paris, per ratings firm Video Research. Blain stepped down following the heart-breaking tournament.

In comes former Les Bleus captain and two-time Olympian Tillie, who had been coaching Osaka of the SV.League since his triumph at Tokyo 2020.

He will see out the current season with Osaka before devoting himself to Japan full-time in spring next year. His contract will run through the 2028 Games.

As gutting as the defeat to Italy was, Tillie said it was growing pains for Japan as they turn their sights to LA28.

“I watched all of Japan’s matches at the Olympics and I think the consensus of everyone who saw them play is that they are a fantastic team, especially in terms of spirit,” Tillie said. “But I think the pressure under the special circumstances of the Olympic Games got to them.

“In the fateful match against Italy, Japan had match point but couldn’t take that one, last step. The reality is, the best teams in the world have middle blockers and wings at 2.05m, 2.10m and we have to find out a way to overcome the physical gap that exists.

“The experience in Paris was not pleasant and difficult - but one that was necessary for LA.

“There will be a lot of tough fights ahead. But we must get past them if we want to reach the podium.”

As example, Tillie cited his own hardships with the French national team who placed a disappointing ninth at Rio 2016 before rebounding to top the podium five years later in Tokyo.

“It comes down to experience. That’s it,” he said. “And when I say experience it’s not just about experiencing winning but also experiencing difficulty, like Japan’s experience at Paris. France are where they are because of the experience they had.

“There’s one path to LA - and that’s to be on the podium at every international tournament until the next Olympics. And if we can’t, we need to analyse why.

“We have to start beating the big teams once, twice, three or four times. It’s how we get to the podium in LA.”