On this day…
Amarcord and volleyball birthdays, Jan Hadrava, Germany, Youth Olympic Beach Volleyball Champions, Korea and journalism.
Welcome to the 123th Episode of VolleyBar!
Every now and then, it is worth reminding our readers – especially those who have joined us more recently – that we were the first to create a daily column bringing together all the major volleyball news of the day. The Italian versions that have emerged since are nothing more than poor imitations.
Even worse, they have repeatedly taken news directly from our work, including the possibility of Grbić returning to coach Serbia and the issues surrounding Panathinaikos and Olympiacos – all of which we obviously published yesterday, only to see them appear shortly afterwards in what they call “Mondo Volley” but is a mere imitation of VolleyBar.
These are, of course, the same people who have previously published word-for-word translations of our articles without ever crediting the original source. And they continue to do so today, failing to acknowledge us even after copying virtually every piece of news we publish here.
Either way, November 5 brings together some significant international milestones, a memorable Italian Champions League night, landmark beach volleyball victories and a particularly rich birthday list.
In a European qualification tournament for the women’s Olympic qualifying pathway, the Czech Republic defeated Ukraine 3–2 on November 5, 1999.
Misty May-Treanor and Holly McPeak captured the women’s title at the Fortaleza Open on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour on this day in 2000. It was the third and final World Tour title won by the American partnership.

In 2006, the Women’s World Championship in Japan featured three notable matches on November 5:
• Germany – China 3–1 (20:25, 25:18, 25:21, 25:23)
• Azerbaijan – Mexico 3–0 (25:14, 25:10, 25:16)
• Russia – Dominican Republic 3–1 (25:17, 20:25, 25:18, 25:19)
Germany recovered from losing the opening set to overcome China, while Russia also bounced back after dropping the second set. 
Also in 2006, on the beach, Chinese duo Chen Xue and Xi Zhang won the Phuket Open. The FIVB records this as their second title out of 15 World Tour victories as a partnership. 
One of the strongest indoor highlights for this date: Italy beat China 3–2 at the 2011 Women’s World Cup in Japan, with set scores of 25:20, 22:25, 21:25, 25:21, 15:12.
After falling behind 1–2, the Italian team recovered to take the fourth set and then clinched the tie-break. Italy went on to win the World Cup undefeated, securing qualification for the London 2012 Olympics.

At the PalaTrento, on November 5, 2015, Trentino Diatec defeated Noliko Maaseik 3–0 in the opening round of the Champions League group stage: 25–18, 25–19 and 25–21.
The match lasted 1 hour and 14 minutes, with 2,348 spectators in attendance. Modena also won on the same evening, beating ACH Volley Ljubljana 3–0 (25:27, 17:25, 17:25), completing a strong opening night for the Italian teams. 
Antonella Del Core was born on November 5, 980 and turns 46 today. One of Italy’s outstanding outside hitters, she won two European Championships, two World Cups and three CEV Champions League titles. She also competed at the Olympic Games. 
Sabina Altynbekova, 30, was born on this day in 1996. The Kazakh outside hitter became internationally famous after the 2014 Asian Junior Championship, when her media profile exploded across Asia. 
Saliha Şahin, 28, was born in 1998). Turkish outside hitter and national-team player, with club honours including the CEV Cup and the 2023–24 Polish championship.

Japanese libero, an Olympian at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, currently associated with Osaka Bluteon Tomohiro Yamamoto was born on November 5, 1994 and turns 32 today, while his fellow countryman Tatsunori Otsuka turns 26 and was born in 2000. Japanese outside hitter playing in Italy for Allianz Milano, and he represented Japan at both the Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games. 
Meanwhile, Oļegs Antropovs would have been 79 (born 1947, died in 2023). Latvian volleyball player who represented the Soviet Union, he won Olympic gold at Mexico City 1968, while Miloslav Ejem would have been 91 (born 1935 and died on September 2, 2026). Czech volleyball educator, coach, referee and administrator, he was inducted into the International Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2014. He was a long-serving FIVB instructor whose work influenced generations of coaches.
Back to then present, bad news for Jan Hadrava and Indykpol AZS Olsztyn: the Czech opposite has suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon during Wednesday’s match against Zawiercie. He will undergo surgery at a specialist clinic in Konin, with the injury ruling him out for the remainder of the season. A tough blow for Olsztyn and its captain, who now faces a long rehabilitation.
Wishing Jan strength, a smooth recovery and a successful return to the court.
The classic in Germany belongs to Berlin Recycling Volleys. In front of 5,438 spectators at the Max-Schmeling-Halle, the Berliners defeated VfB Friedrichshafen in straight sets, 3-0 (25:22, 25:16, 25:16).
Berlin have now recorded five wins in five matches and remain second in the standings, level on 15 points with league leaders SWD powervolleys Düren.
The contest was particularly close in the opening set, with Tom Koops’ serving helping Berlin secure the decisive late advantage. From the second set onwards, the hosts took firm control of the match. Nicolas Zerba made his presence felt at the net with his blocking, while Nolan Flexen put Friedrichshafen under constant pressure from the service line. Berlin’s serving continued to prove decisive in the third set, which ended with the same 25-16 scoreline as the previous one.
Koops was named MVP after scoring 14 points, including two blocks and two aces. Flexen finished with 12 points and four service winners, while Zerba contributed three blocks.
About Beach Volley, Austria takes Gold!
Paul Hohenauer & Martin Poinstingl are the Youth Olympic Beach Volleyball Champions. They secured the gold in Dakar, Senegal, with a thrilling 3-set win over Germany’s Lasse Hüper & Filo Wüst.
The Netherlands’ Jara Both and Matilda de Groot won in Women’s competition.
The dynamic Dutch duo dominated the sand in Dakar bringing home the ultimate prize after an epic, hard-fought three-set victory over Italy’s Margherita Coretti and Micol Lafuenti: 21-16, 19-21, 15-11.
In Korea, Hyundai Capital Skywalkers captured a crucial away victory, taking down the Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance BlueFangs in a hard-fought four-set battle during the 2026-27 V-League season: 27:25, 19:25, 25:16, 25:23.
Heo Su-bong was the driving force behind the winning offense, dropping a team-high 26 points, with excellent support from Cuban Leo Leyva who added 21 points. For Samsung, Brazilian Felipe Roque delivered a massive match-high 30 points and Chinese Wang Bin chipped in 19, but it wasn’t enough to defend their home court against Hyundai Capital’s balanced attack.
In any case, to conclude the opening remarks of today’s article, we would like to share the words of an important international figure with whom we recently spoke: “You publish quality content every single day, to the point that even those who have been around longer than you feel the need to use VolleyTimes as their primary source for stories they would otherwise never even know existed. It means you are doing a great job, and certainly a better one than they are.”
We appreciate the recognition. However, journalism as we learned it is not about copying and pasting – and in their case, copying, pasting and translating.
We wish you all a wonderful evening and look forward to seeing you tomorrow for the final episode of the week!
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