From "The Bad Coach Who Fell Last" to "The Master Winning Championship"... Coach Lee Young-taek's Tears "Players Did It All" [the scene of Jangchung]

*This content was translated by AI.

GS Caltex coach Lee Young-taek (49) expressed his overwhelming feelings about winning the championship.

GS Caltex defeated Korea Expressway Corporation with a set score of 3-1 (25-15 19-25 25-20 25-20 25-20) in Game 3 of the women's championship match of the 2025-26 season at Jangchung Gymnasium in Seoul at 1:30 p.m. on the 5th.

As a result, GS Caltex regained the top spot for the first time in five years since the 2020-2021 season, when it achieved the treble (winning the cup tournament, ranking first in the regular league, and winning the championship game). It is the first championship in the women's history of the V-League to win the championship.

This season, GS Caltex was 1-5 underdogs against the Korea Expressway Corporation and the regular league, especially in Gimcheon, where it lost all three games, but it was different against the Champs. He won two consecutive games in Gimcheon, won at home Jangchung, and achieved the championship with three consecutive wins.

GS Caltex has been on a roll in spring volleyball. GS Caltex, which reached the semi-playoff at third place due to a fierce background at the end of the regular season, won a single game against Heungkuk Life Insurance and even beat Hyundai Engineering & Construction with two consecutive wins in the playoffs. In the match against the Champs, he lightly overpowered even the road construction, which ranks first in the regular league, and won six consecutive spring volleyball games.

On the other hand, the Korea Expressway Corporation lost three consecutive championships, failing to fight back and losing the championship. It failed to overcome the aftermath of the de facto dismissal of former coach Kim Jong-min, who led the regular league this season, six days before the start of the championship match.

Gisele Silva led the way with 36 points, the most for both teams. Kwon Min-ji and Oh Se-yeon contributed to the victory by scoring 14 points and 11 points, respectively. In particular, Oh Se-yeon scored seven successful blockings, the most by both teams.

At the post-match press conference, manager Lee Young-taek said, "It's like a dream, with tears in his eyes. "Everyone came here because of the players," he said. "When I see the players' faces, I keep crying. I think it's because I'm old," he said, expressing his emotional feelings.

The MVP of the championship was Silva, who swept 33 out of 34 votes (voting 1). Coach Lee Young-taek said, "It's a natural result. "It's so great that I can't express it in words," he said, "I was sorry that I couldn't take it out even though I knew I had knee pain in the third set, but I overcame it brilliantly."

When asked if he expected to win, he answered, "I didn't do it at all." Coach Lee Young-taek said, "The first goal was to advance to spring volleyball. Raina and Ahn Hye-jin were injured during the season, so they had to revise their plans, he said. "Although they fell slightly short of the target of 20 wins and 60 points, they confirmed spring volleyball in the final game in the mix-up. As people around me said, "It's worth trying a short-term game because Silva has one," he smiled. "I was exhausted, so if I gave up even one game, I could have been anxious behind it, but it was the result of the players holding out well," he said.

The most difficult crisis was the semi-playoff against Heungkuk Life Insurance. Manager Lee said, "It was the most burdensome single-round match. "I expressed my confidence, saying I won everything at home, but the pressure of a single game was really great," he confessed.

When asked about the difference between last season and this season, he said, "What is there to evaluate last season. It was a poor coach who barely got out of last place. But it's been like this in one season," he said. "Because we started the semi-playoff, we became the team with the highest number of games. I'm the same, but I think the players have improved a lot," he said.

When asked about the 'Technology Development Award', he said, "Everyone has really improved a lot. "It's hard to pick anyone, including captain Yoo Seo-yeon, who recorded a career high, Kwon Min-ji, who did her part in the middle blocker, and (Kim) Ga-eun, who played a key role in the postseason from the fifth round," he said with a big smile.

Regarding Kwon Min-ji's passionate ceremony, he also said, "It's an expression of confidence. With an active ceremony, the atmosphere of the court was brought towards us. I also asked the players to be active," he said.

He also carefully expressed his thoughts on former coach Kim Jong-min of the Korea Expressway Corporation, who was dismissed just before the championship. Coach Lee Young-taek said, "I am a senior who always learns a lot from Korean Air," adding, "It would not have affected the road construction team." Acting Kim Young-rae, his junior, must have been busy on the big stage of the championship, but it was a good opportunity for us, although it was a pity that he could not face head coach Kim Jong-min," he said honestly.

As for future plans, he laughed, "There were many events because it was my first time to win," and said, "The players will rest well, but the free agent (FA) market will be held in three days. I think I have to run hard without a break," he said.

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*This content was translated by AI.