Rwanda Energy Group (REG) volleyball club has registered to compete in the men’s national league, starting next season, which is scheduled to get underway on November 26. According to head coach Robert Ndabikunze, the new club has completed the registration process and they plan to start pre-season training before the end of next week. REG is the third team that has applied to join the first division league after University of Tourism Technology and Business Studies (UTB) and Gisagara VC. Once they are given the green light, the league will grow to 12 clubs. They are expected to be approved during the Rwanda Volleyball Federation General Assembly on November 12. “We have signed some players but we are still looking for others before the league starts. We want to build a strong team which can compete with the best in the division,” Ndabikunze said on Thursday. Among the players that REG have signed include Fabrice Bahizi from APR, Barrack Rugira from Kirehe, Mark Rukebesha, Peter Bigirimana, Eugene Tuyishime (all from UNIK), and Herve Kagimbura from Rayon Sports. There are also two foreigners who joined from Ugandan clubs; Sky and Nkumba University. The men’s league is expected to kick off on November 26 while the women league will start on January 20, 2017 but these dates have to be approved during the general assembly. University of Kibungo (UNIK) won the league for the second consecutive season this year, while RRA are the defending champions in the women’s league. Both UNIK and RRA will represent Rwanda at the 2017 Africa Club Championships. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
