Czech Republic claims three straight wins to reach #EuroVolleyU20M Final Round
News
Czech Republic emerged as the winners of the #EuroVolleyU20M 2nd Round Pool E qualifier held in Jelgava to secure their participation in the final round of the European Championship scheduled for later this summer in Vasto and Montesilvano, Italy.
The action in Jelgava started on Thursday with Slovenia edging Romania and the home side representing Latvia losing to pool favourites Czech Republic. The Czechs eventually claimed three wins in as many matches to punch their ticket to the #EuroVolleyU20M Final Round.
“Each team was very strong in this group. We started by playing the home team before a very close game with Slovenia followed next. Even though we beat Romania 3-0 and that might somewhat look like an easy victory, each game was very close and we had to fight very hard,” says Czech head coach Jan Svoboda. “We will start preparing for the Final Round at the beginning of July. We will be heading to Slovakia where the first seven teams from the last U18 European Championship will be participating in the European Youth Olympic Festival. But in August, we will start the training process for the U20 Finals in Italy.”
Team Slovenia finished second in Pool E after losing a very close match to the Czech Republic. They still stand a chance of reaching the Final Round through the third and last round of qualifiers. Romania finished third after claiming a dramatic 3-2 victory over Latvia. The first set – which finished at 34-32 for Romania – was the longest of the whole tournament in Jelgava. Romania eventually had the upper hand after a close tiebreak win (15-13).
Lauris Iecelnieks“We fought as best we could, maybe not for the whole 100% but 80% for sure. I have to admit that the Slovenians and Czechs were better in almost all elements, especially in the final sections of the sets. Looking at who performed in these three matches without any big drops, I would say that our libero Kaspars Kronbergs played most steadily. If I have to highlight someone, I think it is fair to say it was him."
Head coach of Latvia
Next up in Latvia later this month will be a #EuroVolleyU18M qualifier in Sigulda featuring the national teams of Greece, Estonia and Latvia – who will be fighting for a spot in the Final Round scheduled for this coming July in Georgia.