VolleyBar SPECIAL : Saturday August 15, 2026

On this day…
Ferragosto, another great sign for ChKS Chełm, Lincoln Williams, Itambé Minas, France National Team, Russia, U17, quarterfinals of 2026 Pan American Cup, and Loveth Omoruyi.

As we announced in yesterday’s Episode 65, we’ve decided, on an entirely exceptional basis, to continue our daily column throughout this weekend as well!
First of all, Happy Ferragosto to everyone!
Celebrated on August 15, this day may well be considered the height of the Italian summer: many Italians still take their summer vacation around this time, with cities traditionally emptying out and beaches filling up. A few years ago, we published an article unrelated to volleyball on our sister website exploring the history, traditions (and curses) of one of Italy’s most beloved summer holidays, which you can read here.

But now, let’s get back to volleyball.

In Poland, following Japanese player Yuki Imahashi, Cezary Sapiński, Łukasz Swodczyk, Tytus Nowik and Maciej Muzaj, Yacine Louati joins ChKS Chełm! The two-time Olympic champion with the French national team will wear the club colours in the 2026/2027 season.
The 34-year-old outside hitter has enjoyed an extremely rich career at both club and international level. Last season, he played for Asseco Resovia Rzeszów, scoring 238 points in 31 league appearances: 175 in attack, 30 from blocks and 33 directly from serve.
And he knows the Polish courts very well. In the 2020/2021 season, he represented Jastrzębski Węgiel, winning the Polish championship with the club. In the following years, he played for clubs including Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe, Asseco Resovia and Italian side Allianz Milano. Earlier in his career, he also played in France and Belgium, as well as for Italian clubs Kioene Padova and Vero Volley Monza.
His greatest achievements, however, have come with the French national team. The outside hitter is a two-time Olympic champion, winning gold at both the Tokyo and Paris Games, but he has also enjoyed success in the Volleyball Nations League. He was part of the French team that won the competition in 2022, and two years later France claimed the gold again, defeating Japan 3–1 in the 2024 VNL final.

In Czech Republic, Lincoln Williams joins VK Lvi Praha. The two-metre-tall left-handed opposite arrives with plenty of experience, having played in the top divisions in Germany, Poland, France, winning the title with Cannes, South Korea and Turkey.
He is currently still fulfilling his international duties with the Australian national team, after which he will join his new club.

In Brazil, Ricardo Lucarelli has signed with Itambé Minas for the 2026/2027 season.
It is a return to his roots for the Brazilian star, who is rejoining the club that launched his career and where he played until 2013.
He will also serve as Minas’ captain next season.
Other new faces of Minas are setters Thiago Veloso, from Poland’s Cuprum Stilon Gorzów, and Meteus Winck, from Joinville, libero Maique Reis form Guarulhos, opposites José Massó Alvarez from Egypt’s Al Ahly and Bryan Lucas Alves Da Silva from Guarulhos, outside hitter Henrique Honorato from Poland’s Ślepsk Malow Suwalki and middle blocker Pietro Santos from Uberlândia.

Now, let’s take a look at some international volleyball.

In preparation for the Mediterranean Games, France B defeated Spain in their first clash, after 2 hours and 7 minutes of play, winning 3–1 (21:25, 28:26, 25:21, 25:21) on Friday in Sète. Two more matches are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at 18:00.
Nathan Feral was France’s top scorer with 14 points and a 43% attacking success rate. The coach also rotated his squad throughout the match, including bringing on Lohan Nack Minyem for Simon Roehrig and Tom Picard for Nathan Canovas. The latter delivered an impressive performance, scoring 11 points and recording an excellent 63% success rate in attack.

Russia Men’s National Team Roster Announced!
The Russian Volleyball Federation has released the 14-man roster for the upcoming friendly matches against Iran, Cuba, and Belarus.

Setters:
Pavel Pankov (Dynamo Moscow)
Konstantin Abaev (Zenit Kazan)

Outside Hitters:
Denis Bogdan (Dynamo Moscow)
Dmitriy Volkov (Dynamo Moscow)
Anton Semyshyev (Dynamo Moscow)
Omar Kurbanov (Lokomotiv Novosibirsk)

Opposites:
Maksim Sapozhkov (Dynamo Moscow)
Ilya Kazachenkov (Lokomotiv Novosibirsk)

Middle Blockers:
Ilya Vlasov (Dynamo Moscow)
Dmitriy Zhuk (Dynamo Moscow)
Dmitriy Lyzik (Lokomotiv Novosibirsk)
Roman Romanovsky (Zenit Kazan)

Liberos:
Evgeniy Baranov (Dynamo Moscow)
Ilya Fedorov (Zenit Kazan)

A new draw for the U17 World Championship will take place today, just a few days before the competition gets underway next Wednesday!
The new draw follows the withdrawals of Japan, United States, Puerto Rico and the Czech Republic, all due to the current situation in the Middle East.
The competition format has therefore been slightly modified: 20 teams will now be divided into five pools of four, instead of the six pools of four originally planned.

Pool A
Qatar
Tunisia
France
Venezuela

Pool B
Italy
Cuba
India
Romania

Pool C
Argentina
Brazil
Mexico
Poland

Pool D
Spain
Egypt
Bulgaria
Türkiye

Pool E
Iran
Chinese Taipei
Pakistan
Algeria

Quarterfinals are Set at the 2026 Men’s Pan American Cup in Morelos, Mexico.
USA earns semifinal berth after bouncing back from dropping the first set to beat Dominican Republic 3-1 (23:25, 25:20, 25:16, 25:13) with 16 points from Jacob Pasteur and 13 from Parker Tomkinson, while Puerto Rico defeated Cuba 3-1 (18:25, 28:26, 28:26, 25:19) in quarterfinals to set up semifinal against Canada.
Cuba will play Dominican Republic on Sunday for 5th place

SEMIFINALS:
CAN 🇨🇦 vs 🇵🇷 PUR
MEX 🇲🇽 vs 🇺🇸 USA

Other results included Costa Rica who bounces back against Curaçao 3-1 (23:25, 25:13, 25:13, 25-17) and advances to Seventh-Place Match playing against Guatemala, who defeats Trinidad and Tobago 3-0 (25:21, 25:21, 27:25).

Italian Women national team outside hitter Loveth Omoruyi has suffered a major injury during a friendly match against Ukraine.
Medical examinations revealed a complete rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), partial tear of the collateral ligaments, partial tear of the medial meniscus, bone trauma to the femoral condyle.
She will undergo surgery and begin her road to recovery.
Wishing Loveth strength and a successful recovery!

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