The Next Big Thing in Volleyball: Théo Faure
Feature
Montpellier HSC VB, the absolute CEV Champions League - Men rookies, compete for the first time in their history in Round 4, in the company of JASTRZEBSKI Wegiel, VfB FRIEDRICHSHAFEN and Vojvodina NS Seme NOVI SAD. Despite witnessing four losses so far, Montpellier’s fans can rest assured the future of their team looks bright, counting on athletes as Théo Faure, who proved being a key player for his squad this season.
Théo played in all the four games so far (16 sets) scoring as many as 75 points (an average of 4.69 per set) and locking the 16th place in the current Best Scorers rankings. He is Montepellier’s top scorer in the competition so far. He has been doing pretty good in the French A League as well, starting the season with an MVP award from the match for the Supercup (which Montpellier won against CVB 52 ). The French opposite is also topping the charts for his team’s best scorer in the domestic league - having played in 13 games, scoring 226 points.
Get to know Théo now, as he might very well be The Next Big Thing in Volleyball.
The Beginning
Théo started playing Volleyball with some of his friends at the age of 11. Before committing to Volleyball, however, he had tried other sports.
“My parents are Volleyball players, too, and during the holidays, I used to play Beach Volleyball as well.”
Going Pro
An interesting part of Théo’s Volleyball journey is the fact that before signing his first professional contract, he used to play as an outside hitter.
Théo Faure“I signed my first pro contract in 2019, with Spacer's Toulouse Volley, and there were some injuries in the beginning of the season, so the coach had to try some new solutions. Since then, I have been playing as an opposite. I like the offensive impact this can have on the game, and the little bit more pressure on the important balls.”
To the 23-years-old French, the decision of going pro, came naturally, starting with feeling and the emotions he felt on youth tournaments, playing for his team, winning some important games.
“At that time, you don’t know yet what it means to play Volleyball professionally, to have a career.”
Entering the training centre of Toulouse was also a turning point for Théo’s choice.
Théo Faure“I started training with a professional team, speaking with the players who already had a Volleyball career, and started thinking: “Oh, it can be really nice to continue this way.”
The Champions League
Faure joined Montpellier in 2021, and since Montpellier is competing this season in the strongest European Club Competition - the CEV Champions League - Volley, to Théo, this is a great chance of gaining important experience.
“We are playing against some of the best teams and the best players. It is a very high level competition, and, for sure, it is a great motivation to learn and gain experience for your development as a player. It is really nice, although we lost our four games so far. However, we still have two more at home - against Friedrichshafen and Novi Sad, and our goal is to win these two matches, and to continue ahead in the CEV Cup. We don’t want our European journey to end just yet.”
Standing at 196 cm tall, Faure is now the team’s top scorer in the competition. And despite the good feeling he has because of performing good, he is also slightly frustrated.
Théo Faure“It is a nice feeling to play good for the team at this level of competition. However, it is also really frustrating, because some of the games, we played really good, but we couldn’t manage to win. Without the win, you don’t have the same feeling for the game.”
The French A League
Reigning French champions, Montpellier started on the right foot, winning the Supercup, but then had some problems.
“We got the title last year, we started the season with a win in the Supercup. After that, we had some difficult times with injuries, as it often happens with teams that play in local and European competitions. The goal now is to be among the best teams, and to start the Playoffs in the best position.”
The Inspiration & The Dream
Proud of the achievements of the French national team in the recent years, Faure says that this team is his biggest inspiration.
“What they are doing, is really amazing!”
Being part of this team again (after making it to VNL 2021), together with winning titles, is Théo’s biggest win.