VolleyBar96# : September 29, 2026

On this day…
Amarcord and volleyball birthdays, Park Man-Bok, Aciobanitei, Olympics, Italian pre-season, 2026 Asian Games and Rui Takahashi

Welcome to the 95th episode of VolleyBar!

On September 29, 2019, Serbia defeated Slovenia 3–1 in the men’s EuroVolley final at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris: 19:25, 25:16, 25:18, 25:20.
Slovenia won the opening set, but Serbia gradually took control of the match and completed their title run in front of 12,654 spectators in the French capital. Uroš Kovačević was named tournament MVP.
It was Serbia’s third men’s European Championship title, following their previous victories in 2001 and 2011.
There is an especially nice connection with the recent EuroVolley: Slovenia were silver medallists in 2019, while Poland took bronze; seven years later, Poland are the 2026 European champions, France silver medallists and Finland bronze medallists.
And, of course, that 2019 final was played in Paris, the same city where France’s men’s team had just become Olympic champions five years later!

Before Serbia lifted the trophy, Poland defeated France 3–0 in the bronze-medal match:
26:24, 25:22, 25:21.
France therefore finished fourth on home soil, while Poland claimed another medal after their 2018 World Championship triumph.

September 29, 2017 was a huge day for Türkiye’s women’s national team.
At the Women’s EuroVolley quarterfinals in Baku, Türkiye defeated Russia 3–0: 27:25, 25:18, 25:20.
It was particularly significant because Russia had beaten Türkiye 3–1 in the pool stage.
Türkiye therefore got their revenge when it mattered most and advanced to the semifinals.
The victory sent the Turkish team into a semifinal against Serbia.
This was one of the important steps in the development of the generation that would eventually establish Türkiye as one of the dominant forces in women’s volleyball.

The same day, hosts Azerbaijan defeated Germany 3–0 in Baku: 25:20, 25:18, 25:21.
The victory sent Azerbaijan into the semifinals in front of 4,900 spectators at the National Gymnastics Arena. Polina Rahimova was the dominant scorer with 21 points.

September 29, 2022 was another significant date in the history of the Italian women’s national team.
At the Women’s World Championship, Italy defeated Kenya 3–0: 25:15, 25:23, 25:17.
Italy were completing the first phase of their campaign in Arnhem and remained unbeaten in the pool.
It was, of course, the tournament in which Italy would eventually win the World Championship gold medal, defeating Brazil in the final in Apeldoorn.

On the same day, Türkiye defeated Croatia 3–0 in Gdańsk: 25:14, 25:12, 25:12.
It was the Turkish women’s team’s opening match in the second pool of the 2022 World Championship.

The hosts, meanwhile, had a difficult evening.
Poland lost 3–1 to the Dominican Republic in Gdańsk: 18:25, 25:22, 25:21, 25:21.
The result came in front of the Polish crowd during the opening phase of the 2022 Women’s World Championship.
Poland would eventually finish sixth in the tournament.

September 29 also has a major beach-volleyball entry.
In 2007, Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings won the Fortaleza Open on the FIVB World Tour.
According to FIVB’s historical records, it was the partnership’s 30th World Tour victory out of the 40 they would eventually collect together.
That puts the date into the story of one of the most successful partnerships in beach-volleyball history.

There is also an obvious one-year anniversary story from Italy.
On September 29, 2025, Italian media were celebrating the men’s national team’s 3–1 victory over Bulgaria in Manila, which had secured Italy’s second consecutive World Championship title. The final had actually been played on September 28, but September 29 was the day-after reaction: celebrations, political congratulations and the return of the champions to the centre of Italian sporting attention.
It is worth mentioning because exactly one year later the landscape has changed dramatically: Italy are no longer European champions, while Poland have just won EuroVolley 2026 and secured their place at LA28!

The Brazilian beach-volleyball star Ana Patrícia was born on September 29, 1997.
Her career includes:
• 2024 Olympic gold with Duda
• 2022 World Championship gold
• 2014 Youth Olympic gold
• Tokyo 2020 Olympic participation
She has become one of the leading figures of Brazilian beach volleyball alongside Duda Lisboa.
So today she turns 29.

French former international Laurent Chambertin was born on September 29, 1966, in Dijon.
He earned an extraordinary 336 caps for France, representing the national team from the late 1980s through the early 2000s.
He played at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, appeared at multiple World Championships and European Championships, and was part of the French generation that finished fourth at EuroVolley 1997.
He also represented France at four World Leagues and three Olympic qualification cycles.

Chinese opposite Yuan Zhi was born on September 29, 1981, in Shenyang.
He represented China internationally from 2001 to 2016 and played at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He also won an Asian Games silver medal in 2006.

Egyptian international Mohamed El-Husseini was also born on September 29, 1982.
He represented Egypt at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, where Egypt finished 11th.

South Korean coach Park Man-Bok died on September 29, 2019, aged 83.
His name is inseparable from the history of Peruvian women’s volleyball. He coached Peru from 1973 to 1992 and again from 1999 to 2001, transforming the team into one of the world’s strongest programmes.

Under his leadership, Peru won:
• World Championship silver in 1982
• World Championship bronze in 1986
• Olympic silver in Seoul 1988

The 1988 Olympic final remains one of the great matches in women’s volleyball history: Peru led the Soviet Union 2–0 before the Soviets produced a spectacular comeback to win 3–2.
Park also led South Korea to a bronze medal at the 1973 World Cup.
He was inducted into the International Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2016.
He coached Peru at five Olympic Games, five World Championships and four World Cups, while winning eight South American Championship titles!

Back to the present, Romanian international Adrian Aciobanitei is officially a new player of Poitiers, while 12 teams are already qualified for the Olympic Volleyball tournaments.
Following the conclusion of the continental championships, in women’s competition 6 of 12 spots are already taken:
• 🇺🇸 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬: Automatically qualified as the host nation
• 🇪🇬 𝐄𝐠𝐲𝐩𝐭: African champions
• 🇹🇷 𝐓𝐮𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐲: European champions
• 🇧🇷 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐥: South American champions
• 🇨🇦 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐝𝐚: NORCECA champions
• 🇹🇭 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝: Asian champions

The same happened for Men’s tournament:
• 🇺🇸 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬: Host nation
• 🇹🇳 𝐓𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐚: African champions
• 🇵🇱 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝: European champions
• 🇧🇷 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐥: South American champions
• 🇨🇺 𝐂𝐮𝐛𝐚: NORCECA champions
• 🇯🇵 𝐉𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐧: Asian champions

How will the remaining 6 spots be filled?
The three highest-ranked teams at the 2027 World Championship that have not already qualified will secure direct Olympic qualification. Based on the nations already qualified, reaching the quarterfinals could potentially be enough.
The final three spots will be awarded to the highest-ranked nations in the FIVB World Ranking, calculated immediately after the VNL 2028 pool phase.

In Italy, Allianz Milano begins its first tests of pre-season, with Guillermo Falasca’s side set to face Valsa Group Modena on Wednesday, September 30 at the PalaPanini and Monza on Saturday, October 3 at the Opiquad Arena. The two matches will provide the first opportunity to see Milano with almost the entire squad available after the return of Robertlandy Simón, Seppe Rotty, Basil Dermaux and Georgi Tatarov from their respective national teams. Simón returns after helping Cuba secure its historic qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, while Japan international Tatsuya Otsuka remains absent and is expected to join the team during the October 4–9 training camp in Scheggino. The friendly against Monza will be played at 15:45 and, like the match in Modena, will be open to the public.
At Itas Trentino, Marcelo Mendez is also gradually getting his full squad back together. After Michieletto and Jansons returned on Monday, Sbertoli, Adriano, Flavio, Torwie and Nedeljkovic have now joined the team following their international commitments. Sbertoli is preparing for another season as captain, while the arrivals of Brazilian outside hitter Adriano and Serbian middle blocker Nedeljkovic add two new faces to the Trentino roster. Laurenzano and Lavia are expected to begin their pre-season on Thursday, with Théo Faure due back on Monday, completing the squad. Trento will therefore have its full roster available shortly before the start of the new campaign.
Rana Verona has officially presented Leonardo Scanferla, its new libero for the 2026/27 season. The experienced Italian defender joins the club after years at the highest levels of domestic and international volleyball and has also represented the national team. Scanferla said he had wanted to play in Verona for several years and is looking forward to making his debut with a team that will also compete in the Champions League. Sporting director Adi Lami highlighted the libero’s experience, reliability and versatility, describing his arrival as an important step in Verona’s development ahead of its first European campaign.
Meanwhile, Rana Verona has also received recognition away from the court. The club has been awarded the Jimmy George Award, presented annually by the Italian Volleyball League to the most correct and sportsmanlike home crowd in SuperLega. Consar Ravenna won the corresponding Kirk Kilgour Award in Serie A2, while Domotek Reggio Calabria received the Serie A3 prize. The awards will be presented during the clubs’ first home matches of the new season: Verona will host Cucine Lube Civitanova on October 17, Ravenna will face Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina on October 18, and Reggio Calabria will welcome Consoli Sferc Brescia on October 25.

The reigning SEA Games Champions Thailand ends their preliminary round of 2026 Asian Games campaign on a high note, improving to a 2-1 record in Pool B after sweeping Kyrgyzstan in straight sets: 25:20, 25:18, 25:14.
With this result, Kyrgyzstan finishes the preliminary round winless at 0–3 and will move on to the classification round.
Vietnam finishes their preliminary round campaign on a positive note, securing a four-set victory over Hong Kong to claim their first win of the tournament: 25:20, 25:20, 23:25, 25:20.
With this result, Vietnam finishes the preliminary round with a 1–2 record, while Hong Kong ends winless at 0–3. Both squads will now move on to compete in the 9th–16th place classification matches.
Also Chinese Taipei closed the preliminary round on a positive note, fighting back from a first-set deficit to defeat Alas Pilipinas in four sets: 21:25, 25:20, 25:17, 29:27.
With this victory, Chinese Taipei secures third place in Pool D with a 1-2 record. Alas Pilipinas unfortunately ends pool play still searching for their first win at 0-3. Both squads will now move forward to compete in the 9th-16th place classification matches.
Kazakhstan defeated Uzbekistan in a four-set battle to secure their first victory of the 20th Asian Games: 13:25, 25:22, 25:22, 25:17.
With the result, Kazakhstan finishes third in Pool A with a 1–2 record, while Uzbekistan concludes the preliminary round winless at 0–3.
Both teams will now compete in the 9th–16th place classification matches.
Defending Champions Iran pulls off an incredible comeback! After dropping the first two sets, the Iranian squad battled all the way back to defeat Indonesia in a thrilling five-set marathon: 22–25, 21:25, 25:21, 25:19, 17:15.
With this victory, Iran stays undefeated and officially secures the top seed in Pool B heading into the Quarterfinals! The result also pushes Thailand (2-1) through to the knockout stage as the second seed, while Indonesia (1-2) will now move on to the classification round.

Japanese volleyball player Rui Takahashi, the older brother of Ran Takahashi, has publicly come out as gay, sharing his personal journey of self-acceptance and expressing hope that his story can encourage others who may be struggling to accept themselves.
In a social media post, the Suntory Sunbirds Osaka player opened up about spending years struggling with and denying his sexuality.
Rui said that spending about two years on the same team as his younger brother Ran gave him an opportunity to begin accepting himself. He credited Ran, along with his family, teammates, team staff, and others around him, for supporting him throughout that journey.
“By putting my feelings into words, I was able to process my emotions, and little by little, I began to feel that ‘it’s okay to be exactly as I am,’” Rui shared.
As he enters the new season, Rui emphasized that his commitment to volleyball and his personal growth remains unchanged.
He also expressed hope that his decision to speak openly about his experience could serve as a source of encouragement for people facing their own struggles with self-acceptance.
“I hope to continue growing through volleyball, true to who I am as Rui Takahashi.”

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