She turned heads this season when she was drafted No. 1 overall by IBK. How will Brittany Ackromby (USA, Puerto Rico) fare in her first Korean league?
At the in-person 2023 KOVO Women’s Foreign Player Draft in Turkuye in May, Abercrombie was the first player to be selected by a Korean club.
A left-handed opposite spiker who plays for the Puerto Rico national team, Abecrombie stands at 5-foot-9 and has solid fundamentals along with a variety of attacking angles. He has also played in Germany and the Turkkiye League.
At the time of his selection, head coach Kim Ho-cheol said, “I focused on players who are not the best physically, but can play ‘volleyball that fits the team,'” explaining why he chose Abecrombie.
After joining the team at the end of last month, Abercrombie traveled to Chungju for a training camp and seemed to be in good shape. “I’m adjusting well to life in Korea, and I’m feeling very good,” he smiled when I caught up with him recently at the Yongin training center, “and the teammates are all very friendly.
He hopes to use his experience playing in different countries to his advantage in the Korean league. “Usually in the U.S. and other professional leagues, there is an intensive training period right before the season, so we have double training in the morning and afternoon, so the pattern is similar, but the Korean league seems to have a little more training,” he said.
Abercrombie also spoke about coach Kim Ho-cheol’s training methods. Currently, Kim is working on his blocking. “The training method is good because my style and the coach’s style match well,” he said, “He encourages me to focus and try harder for the team. In fact, there is not much difference in the technical part from the way we have been playing volleyball, but I think it will be a little different because Korea is a league with good defense.”
Since joining the team, captain Shin Yeon-kyung has been the teammate who has looked out for him the most. In an earlier interview, she called all of her teammates by their first names, showing the kind of leader she is.
“We got to know each other quickly because (the captain) took care of us a lot,” Abecrombie said, “I already got to know all the other players, and thankfully she came to me first, so I was able to adapt quickly. In terms of food, I’ve been enjoying Asian cuisine since I was in the U.S., so I didn’t have much trouble enjoying it in Korea.”
Having traveled to different leagues around the world, we were curious about the experiences and environments in other countries. Abercrombie’s career has taken him from his native Puerto Rico to Poland, Germany, and Turkuye. Korea is his first time playing volleyball in Asia.
However, Abercrombie didn’t think much about it and said, “The environment in Korea and overseas is almost the same. “Also, the team I played for had good player management and a well-equipped environment. However, it was difficult to combine volleyball and study,” he added.온라인카지노
“Korea is a particularly good environment to play volleyball because everything is organized to run efficiently, we eat on time, and there are a lot of trainers (compared to overseas). Overseas, it’s a more independent environment, so you don’t have as much time for yourself, and you have to take care of yourself. In Korea, the courts are always well organized, so you can start training right away. In short, overseas, you have to take care of yourself, but in Korea, the team takes care of you. The team thinks a lot about ‘what the players need’ and prepares for them.”
With just over a month to go until the start of the season, Abercrombie is working diligently with his teammates to improve the team’s performance. “Thank you for your support,” he said, “and I’m looking forward to seeing you at Hwaseong Stadium.”