TRENTO-Gabriel “Gabi” Garcia Fernandez is the expected reinforcement in place 2 for Itas Trento. He will be the twenty-five year old Puerto Rican with a US passport, who will fill the role of deputy Rychlicki in a squad built to be even more competitive and high level.
Gabi Garcia is an athlete with great physical and technical qualities, who knows the top Italian championship well for having played there in the last three seasons, first with Civitanova and then with Padova. With the Cucine Lube jersey he immediately won the Scudetto, in 2022, putting his signature on display with 240 personal points, 28 of these directly in service, a fundamental among the most interesting of his repertoire. Even in the following years he was able to offer an important contribution and in particular in the last one he was among the protagonists of the salvation of the historic Paduan Club. Before arriving in Italy he had played on the fields of the American NCAA, proving to be the best player in the 2020-2021 season when he defended the colors of Brigham Young University. He wore the jersey of the Puerto Rican National Team between 2019 and 2022, winning the Norceca Championship in 2021 before changing Federation and becoming a player of the United States since last March, with whom he has already debuted in the ongoing VNL 2024. In Trento he will wear the number 10 jersey, which in the past had already been used by two other players of his role such as the Slovakian Chocholak and the Italian Pinali. He is the first Puerto Rican in the history of Trentino Volley, the fourth athlete of the United States National Team to wear the yellow and blue jersey after Millar, Suxho and Russell.
The words of Gabi Garcia-
« It’s nice to be part of a club with a great tradition like Trentino Volley; wearing the yellow and blue shirt will be one of the most important challenges of my career, I consider it a decisive turning point. As an opponent in the last three seasons I have been able to appreciate the quality, competitiveness and environment that reigns in this prestigious Club. I arrive in Trento to offer tranquility and trust; together with Rychlicki we will in fact form a pair of opposing players, which will guarantee the team many points and the certainty of always having a player on the pitch in that role suited to its ambitions. I know well what type of role I will have within the squad and I am happy to cover it because we will be busy on multiple fronts, always and only with the aim of winning.”
The words of the coach Fabio Soli-
“Gabi Garcia is a great opposite hitter; this is further confirmed by the fact that he is currently working with the US national team. In the Italian championship he has repeatedly demonstrated his value and after the season spent in Padua he strongly wanted to come to Trento. This makes us immensely happy, because it gives the idea of a player who wants to grow and be part of a group that makes the culture of work one of its great values. I am convinced that he will be able to offer us a notable contribution and experience a year full of satisfaction. From a technical point of view he has two really important fundamentals such as attack and serve; he showed them both in Civitanova and in Padua, even in delicate moments of decisive matches.”
