Player · Coach · Creator

A Lifetime in Volleyball.
A Clearer Path for Players.

I’m Jiri Popelka — a former Czech national-team player, professional volleyball player and coach.

I created VolleyCountry and Next-Gen Hitter to help players understand their game, identify what is holding them back and follow a clearer path to improvement.

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My Playing Career

Volleyball Has Shaped My Entire Life

I represented the Czech national team in more than 180 international matches and competed at three World Championships and four European Championships. At the 2010 World Championship in Italy, I finished as the tournament’s second-best spiker.

My professional career took me across the Czech Republic, Italy, Poland, France, Germany, Russia, Turkey and Argentina. Different countries, coaches and playing styles taught me that there is never only one way to become a better player.

2nd Best Spiker

2010 World Championship

180+

National-team appearances

3 World Championships

Representing the Czech Republic

8 Countries

Professional playing career

Why I Created Next-Gen Hitter

Players Don’t Need More Random Drills

Throughout my career, I saw players work extremely hard without always understanding what they actually needed to improve. One player needs more explosiveness. Another needs better timing, a faster arm swing or smarter attacking decisions.

Next-Gen Hitter was created around one simple idea: every hitter needs a different starting point. The assessment identifies that starting point and connects each player with a focused development path.

From Player to Coach

Turning Experience Into a Clear System

Today, I work with young volleyball players and use the lessons from my professional career to make development easier to understand. Coaching has shown me that players improve faster when they know why they are doing something and what progress should look like.

Through VolleyCountry, I share those lessons with players and coaches around the world. More than 65,000 people follow VolleyCountry on YouTube, and over 2,000 players have joined the training platform.

My Coaching Philosophy

Train With Purpose

Understand Your Game

Know where your attacking game is strong and where it is limiting you.

Identify Your Priority

Focus on the change that can make the biggest difference right now.

Follow a Clear Path

Replace random training with focused lessons, practice and challenges.

Measure Progress

Evaluate what changed and decide what your game needs next.

Find Your Starting Point

Stop Training Blindly

Discover what your attack needs most and start the right development path for free.