‘Everybody Is Smiling’: Marina Tushova Will Forever Cherish Her Time In The Philippines

Marina Tushova reflects on her stay in the Philippines that culminated in a highly memorable PVL stint with Capital1. 

Fiery Russian import Marina Tushova capped off her maiden PVL stint on Saturday after Capital1’s playoff debut against the Cignal HD Spikers. 

Tushova reset the PVL history books for a third time with her 50 points after leading Capital1’s furious charge to force a fifth set against the HD Spikers. 

Cignal ended up escaping, but Tushova had written another page to her Philippine volleyball chapter. The 26-year-old leaves as a beloved import that has earned her spot in the history books. Tushova had previously reset the record books with 46, and 49 point efforts before today’s 50-piece.

And the feeling is mutual. As the Philippines remembers Tushova, she will also remember the country as she heads into her next chapter. In playing pro volleyball, she had become a recipient of Pinoy hospitality. 

“What I will miss? I will miss these people. They’re always happy, everyone is smiling. In my condo, you know, I always come into my condo and they’re like smiling to me ‘Marina, good afternoon’. All this,”  Tushova told The GAME in an exclusive interview.

“I love it. I love these fans. They’re always texting me, asking me how am I, supporting me. I will miss this team, it’s amazing.” 

Tushova also lauded the sportsmanship in Philippine volleyball, saying: “And other teams, you know? Because they [have] respect here.”

“Everyone respects everyone, what I feel. Like if I don’t even know another girl from another team, like she can say hi to me and I will say hi and we will smile to each other. This is amazing and I will miss it,” she said. 

Likewise, she expressed appreciation towards head coach Roger Gorayeb. The legendary mentor himself chose Tushova to be Capital1’s Reinforced Conference import. 

“Coach Roger, is the coach…he will never do anything that will hurt you,” shared Marina. “And he’s always ‘Better to do nothing than to do something that can disturb the team.” 

“Then he’s always listening to us, always. Doesn’t matter what we can tell him and about what, he will always listen to us,” she said while thanking the legendary mentor.

Up next for Marina Tushova will be a stint with Ganja Volleyball in Azerbaijan until April next year. Now, the team will receive an even sharper Marina courtesy of the Philippines. 

It’s in the Philippines that Tushova first became a lone import. Practices are more rigorous with Capital1. In her words, “Like everyday we have game, game, game, game, game”. 

Tushova has also learned to be more positive on the court. It’s a work in progress, but it’s something she hopes to keep moving forward. 

“Yeah, but sometimes I’m too mad, like how is it possible to smile when you work hard? But yes, you Filipinos teach me this. You can, you can enjoy and you can do hard work…Yes, you can smile and you can work at the same time…I hope to keep it…I need to keep it,” she told reporters in a separate interview.

Most importantly, the Philippines taught Marina to believe in herself. After all, Capital1 believed in her, while countless fans have sent messages of support to the beloved Russian. 

Heading into Azerbaijan, this is the “biggest learning” she’ll bring from her Philippine stint. 

“This belief in me, belief in my team, trust in yourself, all this. And I hope to bring this support, you know, in the team. I don’t care if they’re cheering on me or cheering on another team. I don’t care. This noise pushes you to work more,” she told The GAME. 

Unfinished business 

Understandably, Marina Tushova has unfinished business in the PVL. After all, Capital1 dismantled Cignal’s 2-0 lead in sets, and were three points away from scoring the major upset. 

“I hope we will have another opportunity. I hope that I will come back here to play again. And I hope that I will be better next year. And I hope that Capital1 will improve too. And I hope that I can bring something more to this team, this amazing team,” she told reporters. 

Tushova lauded Capital1’s continued improvement. Throughout the season, their meteoric rise has been a major storyline in the Reinforced Conference. 

For her, Capital1 has “already touched the roof”, and will need to unlock a higher level of play moving forward. Still, that’s not to discredit their conference-long effort. 

“So for now, it’s the hardest moment, to go up again. So during these two and a half months, I guess, they did a lot of [good] job. You see it, right? During our results, how much games we won and how [close we lost] today, we were fighting until the end,” she said. 

“It’s incredible. And it’s so hard to get it. Because like when you’re a player and you’re like, okay, this team is like stronger than us. But no, they were fighting until the end.”

If all goes well, fans can expect Marina Tushova to return by July to August next year with Capital1. Hopefully, they can finally break through to the next round by that time. 

Banner image courtesy of the Premier Volleyball League.