Russia U20
Including the time when they competed under Soviet Union flag, Russia became the U20 European champions for the record 19th time.
In the final of the 2018 edition of the tournament that was held in Den Haag, The Netherlands, “Zbornaya” defeated the Czech Republic by a 3-2 (18-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 18-16) despite being in the abyss with one foot.
Czechs had a double match point at 14-12 in the tie-break but Russia managed to level at 14-14. Then, “Zbornaya” failed to convert two match points but Ivan Kuznetsov nailed the third one to give his team the title.
Both teams were superb in blocking with Czechs being up by two (16-14). Russia had nearly flawless team’s reception of 80%.
Individually, Maksim Sapozhkov top-scored for Russia with 22 points. Viktor Pivovarov made 92% reception (13 digs, 23% excellent)! Marek Šotola notched 20 points for the Czech Republic while Josef Polák recorded 6 kill blocks.
In a duel of EuroVolley co-hosts, Belgium beat The Netherlands to clinch the bronze medal – 3-0 (35-33, 25-21, 25-20).
To see complete results, stats, and standings, visit our European Championship 2018 / Male / U20 page.
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