Cuban defector strikes fear in S. Korean volleyball coaches

SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Yonhap) -- He started playing for the national Cuban volleyball squad at age 15 and defected to the United States five years later just as he came of age.

Yosleyder Cala, 24, is now striking fear in the hearts of South Korean coaches as
he is set to play for the Korean Air Jumbos in a league an ocean away from where
he spent most of his life.
The Jumbos said this week that they have signed Cala, a permanent U.S. resident
who defected from Cuba by not boarding a plane back to his country after an
Olympic qualifier in Puerto Rico in 2004.
Cala has since played for Brigham Young University in Utah and in Puerto Rico's
league.
At a public relations ceremony Wednesday celebrating the Nov. 22 opening of the
South Korean volleyball season, coaches said they were busy assessing the impact
Cala would have on the six-team league.
"I, too, tried to have him sign with us," said Kim Ho-chul, who coaches the
Hyundai Capital Skywalkers, the most favored to win the season until Cala joined
the rivaling Jumbos. "The Jumbos will make the most headlines this year because
they have taken a good player."
Shin Chi-yong, Samsung Insurance Bluefangs coach, and LIG Greaters coach Park
Ki-won agreed, saying the Cuban will pose a formidable threat.
Cala weighs 94 kilograms and stands at 2.05 meters, a figure that allows him to
perform powerful spikes from as high as 3.7 meters. Jumbos coach Jin Joon-taek
said this week that Cala makes it "easier to manage the team" because the outside
hitter can be deployed on both sides of the court.
The Jumbos have declined to disclose details of the contract with Cala. There are
several foreign players in South Korea's volleyball league. Each team is allowed
only one player from outside the country.