Captain - Sulian Caridad Matienzo Linares
Sulian Caridad Matienzo Linares was appointed captain of the Cuba team in 2014. The outside hitter graduated through the national youth team, and she was part of the side that finished 12th at the 2011 World Junior Championship in Peru. She had also shown her promise when she was named Best Spiker at the 2012 NORCECA Junior Championship. As part of the senior national team, she has played in four World Grand Prix campaigns. After finishing sixth in 2012, she was also part of the team when they finished 19th in 2013 and bottom of Group 2 in 2014. Most recently, in 2015, she was part of the team that finished fifth in Group 3. Another notable result with the team was a seventh-place finish at the 2013 NORCECA Championship in Omaha, Nebraska, United States.
The 20-year-old resides in Havana and plays for the city's team, La Habana. She also studied at the University of Havana.
Star Player - Melissa Vargas
Melissa Vargas has relatively vast experience given her young age. She made her international debut for Cuba against Netherlands at the 2013 World Grand Prix in Macau China, and was part of the team that finished seventh at the NORCECA Championship in the same year.
The 15-year-old is one of Cuba's rising stars. She has already collected a host of accolades, including Best Scorer and Best Server at the 2014 NORCECA Junior Championship, and Best Scorer at the 2014 Pan American Cup. The outside hitter was also named Most Valuable Player of the 2014 NORCECA World Championship Qualification Tournament and 2013 Player of the Year by the Cuban Volleyball Federation.
Vargas took up volleyball at age seven in Cienfuegos, Cuba. She turned her attention from football to volleyball after her physical education teacher told her about the sport. She comes from a sporting family. Her father Antonio played basketball at provincial level in Cuba. Her ambition is to compete at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
