Inaugural Geleceğe Smaç Teams Tournament run by Eczacıbaşı Sports Club lays groundwork for next generation of players to emerge

The Eczacıbaşı Geleceğe Smaç Teams Tournament, held for the first time under the auspices of Eczacıbaşı Sports Club, brought together young athletes from different campuses in Antalya. The tournament took place from January 21 to February 1 at the Nirvana Cosmopolitan Hotel in Antalya, Türkiye.

Over the course of ten days, the tournament was organised with a breakdown into three blocks. At the end of each period, Eczacıbaşı Dynavit players Ebrar Karakurt, Elif Şahin, Simge Aköz, Yaprak Erkek, Dilay Özdemir, and Meliha Diken connected remotely with the young Volleyball players, thereby sharing their career journeys and inspiring them to pursue their dreams. 

The Future and Legacy of Volleyball

The closing event of the tournament, hosted by Faruk Eczacıbaşı, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Eczacıbaşı Sports Club, was held with the participation of young athletes and focused on the future and legacy of Volleyball. Speaking at the event, which was attended by members of the Antalya press, Faruk Eczacıbaşı said: “There is a saying: Unity is strength. It is extremely valuable to generate strength together, to work toward a common goal, and to be an indispensable part of a team. This applies not only to your sporting life, but also to your personal life.

I believe that in environments like this, you will see much more clearly how important it is to be an indispensable part of a whole. These experiences will provide you with valuable gains that will guide your life. In society, in your friendships, in the family you will build in the future, and in every role you take on throughout your life, you will learn how to be the best possible part of a whole thanks to environments like this.

You will show the whole world what young people - and especially Turkish women - can achieve, and how strong and determined they can be. You have a long and fulfilling life ahead of you. Life is not just about sport; it is a journey that gains meaning both individually and socially. When you succeed in becoming an indispensable part of society, you will have achieved one of life’s most valuable goals. Being a good person - becoming someone who is sought after, loved, and indispensable - will be one of the most important guides on your life journey.”
 
Eczacıbaşı Sports Club, the pioneer of women’s Volleyball in Türkiye, continues to bring young athletes together through its Geleceğe Smaç Schools, thereby contributing to their athletic and personal development and passing on the Eczacıbaşı tradition to new generations.

About Geleceğe Smaç Schools

In 2015, Eczacıbaşı Sports Club launched the Geleceğe Smaç project in collaboration with ES Volleyball Sports Club. As of July 2025, Geleceğe Smaç has been transformed into the Geleceğe Smaç Sports Schools structure, operating entirely under the Eczacıbaşı Sports Club. With this transformation, the sports schools aim to provide stronger integration with the club's infrastructure system, enabling girls to be introduced to Volleyball at an early age, gain a sporting culture, and continue their development as licensed athletes.

Since 2015, nearly 30,000 young girls have been introduced to Volleyball through the programme, which is run across 24 campuses. From 2025 onwards, nearly 7,000 athletes have participated in the programme; 4,951 of them have been trained at Volleyball schools, while 2,100 have taken to the court as licensed athletes.

The Geleceğe Smaç Teams Tournament, organised for the first time in Antalya under the auspices of Eczacıbaşı Sports Club; was successfully completed with the participation of a total of 13 campuses and 625 athletes from Istanbul, primarily Ataşehir, Beykoz, Koşuyolu, Şerifali, Florya, Maltepe and Izmir campuses (Gaziemir, Bornova, Karşıyaka), as well as Ankara, Adana, Mersin, and Eskişehir.