Favorites Brazil yesterday stormed into the women’s Olympic volleyball final in Beijing, where they will square off against the US.
Brazil stormed past hosts and reigning champions China 3-0 (27-25, 25-22, 25-14), while the US stunned hapless Cuba in a 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-17) canter.
Brazil’s victory in some way made up for their despair four years ago when they blew five match-points at 24-19 against Russia in the semi-final before eventually coming away empty handed.
PHOTO: EPA
China came out the traps firing and quickly opened up a 5-1 lead. But it is not for nothing that Brazil have yet to drop a set and the favorites dug in hard before dragging themselves back into the set and taking it 27-25.
In a thrilling end, brilliant defense from Brazil allowed Castro to smash home the winning spike after a lengthy rally in which China had several opportunities.
Normal service was resumed in the second set with Brazil in the ascendancy but China stuck doggedly to their task and briefly held the lead before the samba stars finished them off 25-22.
China were not letting Brazil have things entirely their own way but the South Americans simply had too many match-winners all over the court and played with a fluidity that no other side can replicate.
But in the final set it was one-way traffic as the talented Brazilians made the class count.
The Americans had already upset World Cup winners Italy in the quarter-finals and here were up against a side that had won every match so far, dropping only three sets in six matches.
Cuba had thrashed the US in their group meeting with their powerful spikers dominating in a 3-0 victory.
But this win for the US proved a remarkable turnaround based on improved teamwork, Kimberly Glass said.
“I think the team just came together. The first time we played them Cuba kicked our butts but that didn’t deter us,” she said. “We always fight. We came together as one unit. When we first started playing we played individually. It was ugly and we made a lot of errors.”
“The US team played very well, however, we didn’t, especially on service and reception,” Cuba captain Yumika Ruiz said.
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
RSS