Cameroon’s Young Volleyballers Step Into the Spotlight in Yaoundé

Yaounde, 10th May 2026 – 220 young players gathered across two days of volleyball to settle who among them had come the furthest and the fastest.

The tournament was the second edition of a gathering organised by the AACFVC, the Association of Volleyball Academies and Training Centres of Cameroon. This body has been quietly building grassroots volleyball in the Centre region of Cameroon. Eight training centres took part, with two travelling from outside the city, from Mfou and Mbalmayo, which gave the competition a reach that felt meaningful even at this early stage.

The host venue was the Nyong-Ekelle centre, based in the Biyem-Assi Jouvence neighbourhood. Finals day brought the young players together at the Complexe Mario, where categories ranging from the youngest mixed age groups competing in touch-and-push formats, through to cadet and junior boys and girls playing full six-a-side, all got their chance to finish what they had started.

The Results

In the cadet girls’ category, Genuis edged out Cité U in three sets, winning 2-1 in a match that, unlike the others, went the distance. The cadet boys and junior boys finals were more one-sided. Volleyball Académie du Lac won both, beating Mbalmayo 2-0 in the cadet boys’ final and Cité U by the same scoreline in the junior boys’ contest. A strong showing from an academy that clearly came prepared.

Coach Ntamack of the Nyong et Kellé Volleyball Académie spoke at length after the competition, and his words captured something of the broader ambition driving all of this.

“The objective and the mission is to promote volleyball everywhere,” he said. “The objective is also to organise competitions. The federation cannot do it alone. We must organise competitions that will reach every corner of the Centre region. We train athletes, coaches and officials. We have former players who have finished their careers and we are bringing them on board. We have academies that have improved their game. Olympique de Meyo is one example. The training centre has also improved thanks to this competition.”

He noted that two clubs, Ekounou Volleyball and Trinity, were absent due to bereavement, which cast a small shadow over an otherwise lively occasion. But he was already looking ahead. The third edition, he confirmed, will be held at the Palais des Sports, a significant step up in scale and visibility for an event that has been growing steadily since it began.

“Volleyball is really spreading,” he said, “and the training centres are recruiting more and more children. We have seen new players who are animated and passionate about volleyball, boys and girls alike.”

As for his own centre’s performance as host, Ntamack was candid. The girls had not been able to train in the weeks before the tournament because of school commitments. Once the academic year ends, he said, the sessions will resume in earnest.