Alan Nine
Italy completed the FIPAV Cup Men Elite with an impressive victory over Brazil and claimed two medals on the final day of the Mediterranean Games.
Elsewhere, Greece reached the Women’s EuroVolley quarter-finals for the first time, while Canada and Thailand secured historic places at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
International
Italy’s men recovered from a set down to defeat Brazil 3-1 in front of 4,100 spectators at the PalaRescifina in Messina.
Brazil won the opening set 25-21, but Ferdinando De Giorgi’s team responded by taking the next three 25-20, 25-18 and 25-20.
The match was the 100th official meeting between the two national teams and brought Italy their second victory at the FIPAV Cup Men Elite, following their five-set win over Germany in Reggio Calabria.
The players will now have three days off before regrouping in Florence on September 3 for the final stage of their preparations for the European Championship.
Italy will travel to Naples on September 8, two days before their EuroVolley campaign begins.
Italy also ended the Mediterranean Games with two medals. The men’s team defeated Turkey 3-2 in the bronze-medal match in Taranto, winning the tie-break 15-10 less than 14 hours after their five-set semi-final defeat by Greece. Diego Frascio scored 27 points and delivered the match-winning ace as Italy claimed a second consecutive bronze medal.
The women’s team took silver after losing the final 3-0 to Turkey, who won 25-22, 26-24 and 25-19. Linda Manfredini led Italy with 12 points, while Alice Bolzonetti added 11. Carlo Parisi’s team had reached the final with four consecutive straight-sets victories, but Turkey proved more effective in the decisive moments at the PalaMazzola.
Women’s EuroVolley
Greece reached the European Championship quarter-finals for the first time with a 3-0 victory over France in Brno.
Martha Anthouli led the scoring with 20 points as Greece continued an outstanding campaign that had already included victories over higher-ranked Ukraine and Bulgaria.
Serbia will face Greece in the quarter-finals after recovering from a difficult start to defeat Croatia 3-1. Croatia won the opening set 25-19 and remained competitive during the early stages of the second. Zoran Terzić’s team then gradually took control before completing the victory with a dominant 25-12 fourth set.
The quarter-final will be played in Brno on Wednesday.
Los Angeles 2028
Canada ended a 32-year absence from the Olympic Games by defeating the Dominican Republic 3-1 in Santo Domingo.
Giovanni Guidetti’s team won 25-15, 20-25, 25-23 and 25-14, with Alexa Gray and Kiera Van Ryk scoring 22 points each.
Canada’s most recent Olympic appearance came at Atlanta 1996.
The qualification continued an exceptional run for Canada, who had recently won the NORCECA Championship after also defeating the United States during the tournament. Los Angeles 2028 will be Guidetti’s fifth Olympic Games and his fourth as a head coach.
Thailand secured the first women’s Olympic qualification in their history by defeating China 3-2 in the Asian Championship final in Tianjin.
After falling two sets to one behind, Thailand won the fourth 25-18 before taking the tie-break 15-10.
Sasipaporn Janthawisut scored 28 points, while Thatdao Nuekjang contributed 18, including seven blocks.
Thailand became the third women’s team to qualify for Los Angeles 2028, joining hosts the United States and Canada.
Their continental title followed consecutive victories over Japan in the semi-finals and China in the final, completing a historic campaign.
