Volleyball: Robin fears being robbed of 2012 place

City of Edinburgh volleyballer Robin Miedzybrodzki fears his hopes of representing Great Britain at the London 2012 Olympics will be dashed amid funding cuts to his beloved sport.

The 25-year-old Edinburgh player has never been fitter yet he is frustrated to be back in his hometown.

Having been playing on the world beach circuit for the past four years and rubbing bronzed shoulders with the best players in the game, he learned in August that cutbacks from UK Sport meant the British Volleyball Federation could not fund a men's beach programme.

With less than two years to go before the London Olympics - and an automatic wildcard place available to a Great Britain team as hosts - Miedzybrodzki knows he is running out of time and money to make that place his own with whichever partner can also raise funds.

At a time when Lottery funding has hugely benefited British sport, he is aware that playing at the Olympics is itself becoming a lottery. It could well be the case that Britain's best pairing may not get the place, and it may go to whoever can afford it most. The GB women's beach teams, who are still funded, have already started an eight-week training camp on Australia's Gold Coast,

"I need to get out to Australia this year so I can prepare properly for next year's tour," Miedzybrodzki said. "For me, the latest I can be playing beach volleyball is in January. I want to be playing right now because I've had my time off but I'm doing a lot of stuff in the gym to ensure I'm in peak condition.

"To play the whole tour next year would cost around 30,000 but I could probably get away with maybe playing just the European legs and then I'd be looking at more like 20,000.

"It's not a fortune. We don't have massive equipment costs, we just need to get to tournaments and train."

Miedzybrodzki was seemingly always destined for a sporting career. He was a promising golfer and played in the Lothian junior team, winning a scholarship to play golf at Glasgow University, and he only took up volleyball as a means of getting fit. He joined Pentland NUVOC volleyball club in his final year at school.

"I just became more and more involved and started training with the Scottish national team. As I progressed, the opportunities in volleyball were greater than golf."