Lloyd Josafat has never represented the Philippines in any international tournaments to date.
But this time, he has a chance to do so as Josafat was named by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation to the 20-man men’s volleyball pool last week after 31 men attended the tryouts last April 29.
And for the 6-foot-2 middle blocker, he will not waste this chance to represent the country in the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam and other future tournaments.
“I don’t have any international experience pa po. That’s why I will do my best to be part of the official lineup,” the 21-year-old Josafat told Tiebreaker Times.
The pandemic really broke the status quo, causing a year-long layoff for most of the athletes here, with just Zoom workouts to keep fit.
For his part, Josafat’s last competitive game was his 32-point outing in University of the East’s four-set conquest of University of the Philippines back on March 7, 2020. Yes, a rookie dropped a season-high during the short-lived UAAP Season 82 tournament.
Josafat knows how big this national team call-up is for his budding career. So he’s been preparing continuously for the national team bubble taking place next month in Subic.
“Self-discipline when it comes to workout and sa diet para if ever magpatawag ng traning, ready na po ‘yung katawan ko,” he said.
But if one will ask Josafat if he expected this to happen in his young career, the answer is no.
However, with the opportunity right in front of him, the Iba, Zambales native will surely grab that chance. And he’ll do everything in his power to earn a spot in the team.
“Sobrang laking bagay po nito kasi sa murang edad ko makaka-experience na ako ng ganito kalaking opportunity,” said the third year Business Management major.
“‘Yung experience na makukuha ko dito makaka-help pa para mag-improve at mag-grow ako as a player.”
