Bahman Salemi dreams of playing in Olympics

TEHRAN – From a young age, Iran’s Bahman Salemi Injehboroun was captivated by beach volleyball. Today, the sport still pretty much dominates his daily life.

“I have been following beach volleyball on TV since childhood and got interested on it. The two people that influenced me the most were Ebrahim Sansabili and Parviz Farokhi,” Salemi said in an interview with asianvolleyball.net.

“Farokhi is one of the beach volleyball veterans. He’s 51 years old, still very much active in the local tournaments and usually finishes in the top four. He is very friendly, and many players admire his personality.”

Salemi started playing 10 years ago and has since collected several medals in AVC and FIVB tournaments, including an Asian Championship title in 2017.

“I started practicing beach volleyball in 2010 and my first international tournament was an Asian beach volleyball tournament for university students.

“Since then I have achieved a silver medal at the Asian Beach Games Phuket 2014, a gold medal at the Asian Championship in 2017 and a silver the following year. I have also won gold and silver medals in FIVB World Tour 1-star events.

“My favorite victory is the Asian Championship in 2017 because I played hurt with a sprained finger, but we still managed to bring home the title.”

He feels there is something missing and he is eager to achieve this feat, like a true champion who is always hungry for bigger achievements.

“I want to take part in the Olympic Games. I have participated in many tournaments, but I still have yet achieved this feat. Participating in the Olympics and getting a good result are things that I wish for myself and future Iranian beach volleyball teams.”

While others struggle to find time in balancing their professional and personal lives, Salemi learned to combine time with his family and the sport, making him enjoy his beach volleyball journey better.

“I spent most of my time with my family and I do all my hobbies with them. Sometimes I play volleyball with my friends.

“Beach volleyball has been my life and my family are also into all the stuff I am involved with. They know that my life would be empty without sport and beach volleyball.

“I owe my life to them and I appreciate the way they are patient with me. When I am preparing for a tournament with the national team, my family bears all the troubles and always understands my situation.”