Rwanda women volleyball league champions Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) have pulled out of the upcoming 2017 Women’s Africa Volleyball Club Championship, which will be staged from April 5-18 in Kelibia, Tunisia.

RRA wrote to Rwanda Volleyball Federation, a copy of which Times Sport has received, and copied to the Ministry of Sports and Culture, in which they cited financial constraints for pulling out. The team was supposed to travel on April 3.

The Ministry of Sports and Culture had offered air tickets for the team but the letter signed by RRA Commissioner, Richard Dusabe, said they don’t have enough budget to facilitate the team during the two-week tournament.

"We want to inform you (MINISPOC and FRVB) that because of budget problems we cannot pay for the team, if you can pay for them all the money needed. We can guarantee that the team will be available and ready to represent Rwanda,” Tusabe wrote.

Last year, for the first time in the history of the women team in Rwanda, RRA reached the semifinal and went on to finish in fourth place. The winner of the 2017 Women’s African Club Championship will represent Africa at the World Club Championships.

Jean De Dieu Masumbuko’s side have been in intensive preparations since Monday at Amahoro Indoor Stadium but with the trip off, players will go for a short break during commemoration week for the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi, from April 7-14.

RRA are currently second in the league table with 22 points from eight matches, one point behind leaders and former champions APR, who however, have played one game more.

Last season, RRA won the league, Carre d’As before losing the finals of the KAVC and Genocide Memorial tournaments.

The 2017 FIVB Women’s Club World Championship will be the 11th edition of the tournament. It will be held for the first time in Kobe, Japan. Eight teams are set to compete in the tournament, including four wild cards.

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