VolleyBar102# : Wednesday October 7, 2026
5 min read
On this day…
Amarcord and a volleyball birthday, Turkish Women’s Super Cup, Italian pre-season, France National Team, Iranian players to China, Japan and Kento Miyaura
Welcome to the Episode 102 of VolleyBar!
On October 7, 2023, the United States secured a place at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games by defeating Serbia 3–0 (25:18, 25:18, 25:17) in the Olympic Qualification Tournament in Tokyo.
The result kept the Americans unbeaten and gave them the Olympic ticket with one match still to play. The following day they completed the tournament undefeated by beating Japan 3–2.
The same day produced a much less happy memory for Italy. In the Olympic qualifier in Rio de Janeiro, Cuba defeated Italy 3–1 (25:22, 21:25, 25:27, 27:29).
It was particularly painful because the fourth set went all the way to 29–27. Italy would eventually miss direct qualification from the tournament and had to wait for the subsequent world-ranking route to Paris.
In the other Olympic qualifying tournament, held in Xi’an, Poland defeated the Netherlands 3–1 (21:25, 25:17, 25:22, 29:27) on October 7.
The match was another step towards Poland’s eventual qualification for Paris. The 29–27 fourth set was the kind of finish that made the match considerably more interesting than the final score suggests.
October 7, 2022 was another important day for Serbia’s women at the World Championship in Poland and the Netherlands.
The defending champions defeated Thailand 3–0 (25:23, 25:17, 25:15) in Łódź, reaching an extraordinary 8–0 record in the tournament and remaining the only undefeated team at that stage. Tijana Bošković did not start the match, but entered for the final rally of the first set and immediately produced the winning block.
On the same day, the Dominican Republic defeated Germany 3–1, with Brayelin Martínez scoring 28 points.
On October 7, 2015, Serbia’s women’s national team also received a special reception from the Serbian Prime Minister after winning the bronze medal at the 2015 European Championship.
It is not a match anniversary, but it is a nice reminder of how important that generation had already become in Serbia.
A nice less-obvious European entry: on October 7, 2019, Scotland won the men’s Small Countries Association Championship.
Scotland first beat Greenland 3–0 and then needed the Faroe Islands to defeat Iceland 3–1. That exact combination happened, allowing Scotland to take the title on set ratio.
October 7 also belongs to beach volleyball history. The 2003 FIVB World Tour event in Rio de Janeiro began on October 7, with the tournament eventually won by Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.
They defeated Brazil’s Shelda and Adriana Behar in the final, 21:19, 21:19. The tournament ran from October 7–12 and was one of the major events of the beach calendar at the time.
Serbian setter Slađana Mirković is born on October 7, 1995.
She has been part of Serbia’s international generation for many years, playing as a setter at both national-team and major European club level. She turns 31 today.
Back to the present, VakıfBank Istanbul defeated Eczacıbaşı 3–2 in the Turkish Women’s Super Cup on Tuesday, October 6, winning 25:21, 25:23, 19:25, 17:25, 15:10.
VakıfBank had lost the previous edition of the Super Cup to Fenerbahçe, so this was also their immediate revenge one year later.
VakıfBank star middle blocker Zehra Güneş has been named the Most Valuable Player of the AXA Sigorta Champions Cup! Congratulations!
A local-but-interesting Italian item: Consoli Sferc Brescia will officially present its 2026/27 roster, coaching staff and new jerseys on October 8 at Palazzo Martinengo.
The club is preparing for another Serie A2 Credem Banca campaign.
Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza are playing Cuneo in a joint preseason training session today, October 7, at 17:00.
It is already the seventh preseason test for Piacenza as they build towards the October 18 SuperLega opener.
The Italian vice-champion Cucine Lube Civitanova will officially present its team for the 2026/27 season on October 12 at the “Eurosuole Forum”. The event starts at 8:45 PM local time.
Before that, on October 10 and 11, the team will compete in a prestigious tournament in Jesi together with Allianz Milano, Olympiacos, and the Japanese Suntory Sunbirds.
Andrea Giani already has a clear idea of how he wants to build the French national team for the road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. The head coach, whose contract with Les Bleus is expected to be renewed, plans to rely on the return of key players, including several two-time Olympic champions, to guide the new generation and help the team reach another level.
“Our priority is to build a team that is constantly competing for medals, like Poland or Italy,” Andrea Giani explained. The French coach also stressed that “in the race for qualification for Los Angeles, points in the FIVB World Ranking will be a priority.”
For France, the objective will therefore be to win more matches in order to climb the FIVB World Ranking and prepare for Olympic qualification. After EuroVolley 2026, where Les Bleus recorded seven wins and two defeats, France remained eighth in the world rankings. For Giani, this result shows that the team will need to perform even better in 2027.
The Italian coach wants to build a squad capable of regularly fighting for medals, following the example of Poland and Italy. The younger players will have to continue their development and, above all, gain playing time at the highest club level. According to Giani, top-level experience will be crucial ahead of the key challenges of 2027.
Iran national team stars Morteza Sharifi and Bardia Saadat are set to join Hebei Baoding Wuli for the 2026–27 season.
The move marks the duo’s first club stints in China.
The Japan SV.League kicks off its 2026–27 season on October 10 and 11 at the Indoor Stadium Huamark in Bangkok, Thailand.
Defending champions SAGA Hisamitsu Springs open their title defense against Aleeza Aichi in a highly anticipated season-opening matchup.
Five months after announcing his marriage, 27-year-old Japanese volleyball star Kento Miyaura took to social media to share some incredible news: he and his wife are expecting their first child!
In a heartfelt message, he thanked fans for their continued support and shared his excitement for this new chapter, promising to cherish his growing family while continuing to give his best on the volleyball court.
Congratulations, Kento Miyaura and family!
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