History written as Argentina claim World U23 title

Cairo, Egypt, August 25, 2017 - Argentina wrote history Friday evening in Cairo as they claimed the country's first ever world title in any volleyball competition, when they knocked out defending champions Russia for the gold medal of the 2017 FIVB Men's U23 World Championship after six dramatic sets.

With tournament MVP German Johansen and Dream Team setter Matias Sanchez on the lineup Argentina completed a brilliant run over the week, topping the 'pool of death', crushing Cuba in the semifinals and bringing down Russia in the final for a historic title that was a long time coming.


Argentina on the podium of a world volleyball championship for the first time in history

For Brazil it must surely be a disappointment (and it clearly showed in the bronze medal) to get knocked off the podium after being the only undefeated team across the board in pool play - though to be fair they had avoided the 'pool of death'.

On the other hand, Cuba's bronze medal proved that the Caribbean island continues to produce some exceptional talent, here for the foreseable future, considering the average age of the Cuban squad in Cairo.

All matches in Cairo were played under a new scoring system currently being tested: a best-of-seven, 15-point set format.



Beyond the Top Four, hosts Egypt made a huge impact on the competition. In pool play they beat such powerhouses as Japan and Poland (and in retrospect could have made even the semifinals had they seized the opportunity they had against Cuba). They then disposed of China and Japan (again) in the knockout phase to finish 5th.

It's Egypt's best finish in an U23 World Champions, after 9th in both the 2013 and 2015 editions. But most importantly the country has gained a brand new generation of high-quality players under Brazilian coach Marcos Miranda.


Egypt coach Marcos Miranda up in the air in the hands the players he has helped mould.

Dream Team:
MVP: German Johansen (Argentina)
Setter: Matias Sanchez (Argentina)
Opposite: Hisham Ewais (Egypt)
Outside hitters: Denis Bogdan (Russia) & Miguel Gutierrez (Cuba)
Middle blockers: Ivan Iakovlev (Russia) & Matheus Bispo (Brazil)
Libero: Rogerio Filho (Brazil)


Dream Team of 2017 FIVB Men's U23 World Championship, left to right: Outside hitters Miguel Gutierrez of Cuba and Denis Bogdan of Russia, middle blocker Ivan Iakovlev of Russia, opposite Hisham Ewais of Egypt, MVP German Johansen of Argentina (also holding the award of best setter, teammate Matias Sanchez), middle blocker Matheus Bispo of Brazil, libero Rogerio Filho of Brazil

Final ranking:
1. Argentina
2. Russia
3. Cuba
4. Brazil
5. Egypt
6. Japan
7. Iran
8. China
9. Poland
-. Turkey
11. Mexico
-. Algeria

All matches are available to re-watch on demand on the FIVB YouTube Channel.

Summary Statistics - 2017 FIVB Men's U23 World Championship

Highest Scorer by Day
21 – Zhou Liying of China v Turkey on 18 August
29 – Hisham Ewais of Egypt v Cuba on 19 August
25 – Kenta Takanashi of Japan v Cuba on 20 August
23 – Kamil Semeniuk of Poland v Japan on 21 August
24 – Hisham Ewais of Egypt v Poland on 23 August
20 – Miguel Gutierrez of Cuba v Argentina on 24 August
20 – Hisham Ewais of Egypt v China on 24 August
22 – Douglas Souza of Brazil v Cuba on 25 August

Top Scoring Performances
29 – Hisham Ewais of Egypt v Cuba on 19 August
25 – Kenta Takanashi of Japan v Cuba on 20 August
24 – Hisham Ewais of Egypt v Poland on 23 August
23 – Kamil Semeniuk of Poland v Japan on 21 August
22 – German Johansen of Argentina v Russia on 21 August
22 – Douglas Souza of Brazil v Cuba on 25 August

Top Individual Blocking Performances
9 – Rahman Taghi Zadeh of Iran v Japan on 24 August
8 – Denis Chereiskii of Russia v Brazil on 24 August
7 – Xiao Lijia of China v Egypt on 24 August
7 – Gaston Fernandez of Argentina v Russia on 25 August
6 – Dogukan Ulu of Turkey v Algeria on 23 August

Top Team Blocking Performances
16 – Russia v Iran on 23 August
16 – Russia v Brazil on 24 August
14 – Russia v Argentina on 21 August
13 – Iran v Russia on 23 August
13 – Egypt v China on 24 August

Top Individual Serving Performances
3 – Romulo Silva of Brazil v Mexico on 18 August
3 – Sergei Pirainen of Russia v Algeria on 18 August
3 – Aleksei Kononov of Russia v Algeria on 18 August
3 – Masato Matsuoka of Japan v Mexico on 19 August
3 – Javad Karimisouchelmaei of Iran v China on 19 August
3 – Jakub Zwiech of Poland v Japan on 21 August

Top Team Serving Performances
11 – Egypt v Mexico on 21 August
10 – Brazil v Mexico on 18 August
9 – Russia v Algeria on 18 August
8 – China v Turkey on 18 August
7 – Poland v Mexico on 20 August

Highest Scoring Sets
32-30 Egypt v Poland (3rd set) on 23 August
26-24 Mexico v Cuba (3rd set) on 23 August
22-20 Brazil v Poland (2nd set) on 19 August
22-20 Brazil v Poland (3rd set) on 19 August
22-20 Brazil v Cuba (4th set) on 25 August
20-18 Egypt v Mexico (5th set) on 21 August
20-18 Iran v Russia (6th set) on 23 August

Highest Scoring Matches
198 – Iran v Russia 4-3 (15-11, 12-15, 10-15, 15-13, 13-15, 20-18, 15-11) on 23 August
191 – Russia v Brazil 4-3 (11-15, 13-15, 15-11, 17-15, 13-15, 15-13, 15-8) on 24 August
189 – Russia v Argentina 4-3 (11-15, 15-12, 13-15, 15-13, 8-15, 15-12, 16-14) on 21 August
187 – China v Turkey 4-3 (19-17, 12-15, 11-15, 15-8, 15-10, 10-15, 15-10) on 18 August
186 – Japan v Iran 4-3 (16-14, 10-15, 13-15, 15-11, 12-15, 15-13, 15-7) on 24 August
184 – Brazil v Cuba 4-3 (13-15, 15-13, 1115, 11-15, 15-11, 15-8, 15-12) on 21 August

Quick links - Volleyball:
FIVB Volleyball Men's U23 World Championship 2017
FIVB Volleyball Men's U23 World Championship 2017 - Schedule
FIVB Volleyball Men's U23 World Championship 2017 - Teams
FIVB.com - Volleyball
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