Government funding cuts to British Volleyball for the London Olympic Games have cut deep and the first casualty is GB's internationally renowned head coach of their Women’s Squad, Dr Lorne Sawula.

Sawula, a Canadian, has been in post only 2 years but already the GB women are hitting above their weight and promising great things three years hence.

British Volleyball Federation President Richard Callicott in paying tribute to the Canadian, warned that the inflexible attitude taken to volleyball preparations by UK Sport could have further consequences that will seriously hamper British Volleyball aspirations at the London Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.

"We owe a great deal to Dr Lorne Sawula one of world volleyball's recognised authorities in coaching for how he has progressed our women and I am particularly grateful while he might have had other jobs to go to two years ago, as a Canadian he felt a special place for the first ever GB team and joined us. However, such quality and progress seems to have counted for nothing to UK Sport or their advisors in their mean assessment of what British Volleyball across its indoor, beach and paralympic disciplines need to make the GB Public proud of the players we are proud of especially when they have come so far so quickly."

Speaking about what he described as his "very special athletes" Dr Sawula warned British authorities that it was never going to be easy, " it will take the 'extra' support of the volleyball community to turn all these 'hopes and dreams' into 'reality'. Anything less leaves very little in the 'legacy pot' and British Volleyball all want the international world to know what they are capable of achieving. This, I hope will drive everyone to stay supporters, look forward positively, find solutions rather than problems and then continue confidently beyond 2012."

The BVF are delighted to announce that Dr Sawula’s assistant coach, Britain's first ever Olympic volleyball player in the 1996 Atlanta Games, Audrey Cooper, a Scot, who played in the 1996 Beach tournament takes over as Head Coach, she said- “I am delighted to be given the opportunity to lead the GB Women’s Indoor Volleyball Programme and build on the outstanding progress over the last 2 years. We have a committed and gifted group of athletes, who along with myself and an excellent team of support staff are determined to achieve our goals in London 2012. The funding crisis is one of many challenges we will no doubt face along this exciting and rewarding journey. The dream is still very much alive and with the support and tenacity of our Board, together we will succeed.”

Notwithstanding this loss the GB teams are hard at work preparing, within what is now an extremely tight budget, for May and June’s European League matches when the men play their second campaign and the women make their maiden voyage with Cooper at the helm"