Volleyball

Poland qualifies for #EuroVolleyU20M via four straight wins at EEVZA event

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Article Mon, Jan 15 2024

Team Poland did record four wins in as many matches at the EEVZA qualifier for this year’s #EuroVolleyU20M held this past week in Gorzów Wielkopolski. This way, the home favourites booked their ticket to the Final Round of the European Championship scheduled for later this summer in Serbia and Greece, while showing a terrific performance in front of thousands of passionate fans. 

Poland were the dominant force at the EEVZA men's U20 qualifier they played on home soil

The EEVZA qualifier featured the national teams of Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia, Ukraine, and hosts Poland – all looking for their chances in the tournament held in the recently opened Arena Gorzów. The key match was a four-set battle between Poland and Ukraine, which was contested on Thursday. The White-and-Reds were able to cope with their ups and downs and were at their best exactly when it was needed the most, this way securing an extremely important 3-1 victory. 

“Before the tournament, we had assumed that the match against Ukraine would be the most difficult for us and a crucial one for the final standing. The Ukrainians looked like the strongest opponent on paper and so they were. We had some problems against them but despite this, we managed to tip the scales in our favour."

Sebastian Pawlik
Head coach of Team Poland

Poland dropped only that one set against Ukraine throughout the whole competition. The last game of the tournament was to decide about who was to finish second and third, respectively. Second place eventually went to Ukraine, which could count on the support of many fans who live in Poland. Latvia finished in third place with their amazing player Kristers Landzans, who impressed the most. Another great individual to emerge from the EEVZA qualifier is Tristan Täht from the Estonian team. Unfortunately, he missed the last game because of an ankle injury. The real “brave heart team” was Azerbaijan, who left their heart and soul on the court in every single action, and they proved it even further when Jamal Guliyev suffered an injury in their last match of the tournament. 

Ukraine, Latvia, and Estonia will all contest the second round of qualifiers scheduled for this coming April – where they will have one last chance to qualify for the Final Round. 

The EEVZA U20 men’s European qualifier was an incredible success - the weekend matches were watched by almost 3,000 fans in the stands, and some games were shown on Polsat Sport News - the main sports broadcaster in Poland.

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