The peak, the injury and the rise: Zhu Ting at Prosecco DOC Imoco is back to being one of the best players in the world; she will also be Pantera in the 2025/26 season as the only volleyball player ever to have won all the trophies played in two seasons. After the 2017/18 Vakifbank here is the All In in yellow-blue, now he is hunting for the trio in the Grand Slam.
When Zhu Ting arrived in Europe in the summer of 2016, she was Henan’s strongest player in the world and a gold medal at the Rio Olympics as the tournament’s best player. With Vakif she confirmed herself as “Zhuperstar”, winning the Club World Cup and the Champions League twice, as well as all Turkish competitions. Then she returned as a prophet to her homeland in China, with Tianjin, before the big stop: the Chinese star, 198 cm, 30 years old, remained in the pits throughout 21/22 after a complex operation on her right wrist that stopped her. After a long re-education in Spain she then arrived in Italy to resume the thread of the conversation, with Savino del Bene Scandicci she played two seasons, taking home a Challenge Cup. She crossed paths with Prosecco DOC Imoco in the 2024 Scudetto Finals, followed within a few weeks by becoming Pantera from an opponent.
At the court of coach Daniele Santarelli, in one of the strongest sextets ever, Zhu played the role of the protagonist, arrogantly taking back the international stage: in 37 games played he scored 472 points with 48% offensive. The Club World Cup in Hangzhou was unforgettable, where the Chinese public welcomed its idol by cheering on Prosecco DOC Imoco from start to finish; and so Zhu dragged the Panthers to the conquest of the world championship, also taking home the award for best spiker of the tournament after signing the point that brought Conegliano to the top of the world for the third time. The same goes for the Champions League, which returned to winning ways 7 years after the last one when he triumphed with Vakif: in the final in Istanbul against his former team Scandicci, he scored 14 points. Now Zhu Ting looks to next season with great ambition, ready to continue writing the yellow-blue history with her class and sympathy that has bewitched the Palaverde fans.
ZHU TING STATEMENTS
“I had a really good time in my first year in Conegliano, I’m very satisfied. This season has been extremely pleasant for me, on and off the pitch, I say it from the bottom of my heart. It was a season in which I felt really comfortable because I found a fantastic atmosphere in the team and in the club: everyone is very respectful, we help each other, from the management to the athletes, within the group, it has always been like this from day one. I think all the trophies won this year have a special meaning for me. The Champions League, for example, because it was the first I won it after the operation and my return. Then also the Italian championship, the first championship was won after surgery on my right wrist and the long rehabilitation, as well as the Club World Cup which was exciting to win in my native country. And then the Coppa Italia, I also won that for the first time. So, basically, these four titles were all” firsts “for me. It’s been a great season, but I think I’m not back to my top yet, not yet, but every year I make progress and I hope next season can be even better.
I can’t wait to live this summer, because I won’t be with the national team and I will be able to have more time for my family, I will be able to rest better and prepare for the next season which will be very demanding. It will be an excellent opportunity to recover energy, both physically and mentally.
I already miss the atmosphere of the Palaverde, I love this arena, really. First of all for the fans, who are always very warm, every game is a party. At every opportunity they support us with all their heart, and when we win they are always there, you can hear their voices. There is a perfect fusion between the team and the fans, and it is a truly magical feeling. See you next season!”