France and Iran earned the Olympic berths on Saturday at the Men's World Olympic Qualification Tournament in Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo, Japan, June 4, 2016 – France and Iran secured their spots for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games with their respective victories, as Australia and Canada earned victories to keep their Olympic hopes up at the Men’s World Olympic Qualification Tournament at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium on Saturday.
Quick linksAustralia bt China 3-1 (25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 26-24)
Match CentreFrance bt Venezuela 3-2 (25-21, 23-25, 25-11, 20-25, 15-9)
Match Centre Iran bt Poland 3-1 (25-20, 25-18, 20-25, 34-32) Match CentreCanada bt Japan 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-19) Match Centre
France needed two sets to claim the Olympic berth and they were able to get that in the third set, with Antonin Rouzier’s 17-point attack assault. France defeated the South American side 3-2 (25-25, 23-25, 25-11, 20-25, 15-19). Venezuela had good performances in the second set and fourth sets that involved Emerson Rodriguez, Jhonlenn Barreto and Willner Rivas on the forefront of their offence. Rodriguez top scored for Venezuela with 16 points, while Barreto and Rivas finished with 15 and 13 points, respectively. The match also saw an opportunity for the other French players to rise to the occasion as Rossard Thibault and Nicolas Marechal produced nine and eight points, respectively, in the fourth and fifth sets.
Iran secured their Olympic berth after they defeated Poland 3-1 (25-20, 25-18, 20-25, 34-32). The Iranians had a difficult task to fulfil, as they went up against the undefeated team, but they delivered in an impressive manner. Iran was led by Shahram Mamoudi, who scored 24 points to help his squad earn their historic first-ever qualification to the Olympic Games. Iran controlled the first two sets but Poland came back in the third set. Iran prevailed in the nail-biting fourth set after being pushed to play extra points, but two costly errors on the Polish side rewarded them with the victory. Poland’s Dawid Konarski finished with 29 points.
Thomas Edgar led Autralia to keep their Olympic hopes alive as they defeated continental rivals China 3-1 (25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 26-24). Australia showed their physical advantage over China in the first two sets but the East Asian side kept their composure in the third frame to extend the match. The fourth set went into a race but Australia benefitted from a service reception by China that gave them set point. China tried to get back but Paul Carroll’s attack and a block on their rivals secured them match victory. Edgar finished with 21 points, while Zhang Chen scored 17 markers on a losing effort for China.
Meanwhile, Japan showed a promising start when they won the first set, but the host team could not sustain their momentum as Canada took a 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-19) win to stay in contention for Olympic qualification. John Gordon Perrin and Gavin Schmitt teamed-up to ensure the Canadian victory and finished with 22 and 18 points, respectively. The Canadian block proved to be too strong for the Japanese hitters as Kunihiro Shimizu and Takashi Dekita, who finished with 14 and 12 points. Justin Duff produced points on the offensive and defensive ends as he scored eight attacks and three of the nine Canadian blocks.
On final day, Iran will face Venezuela in the first match at 1:10 GMT, then Canada will play China at 3:55 GMT. Poland will match-up with Australia at 6:40 GMT, while France will meet with hosts Japan in the final match of the tournament at 10:20 GMT.
Top Scorer by Day
29 – Dawid Konarski of Poland v Iran on June 4
25 – Shahram Mahmoudi of Iran v China on June 2
34 – Paul Carroll of Australia v France on June 1
33 – Thomas Edgar of Australia v Canada on May 31
27 – Gavin Schmitt of Canada v Iran on May 29
22 - Antonin Rouzier of France v China on May 28
Top Scoring Performances
34 – Paul Carroll of Australia v France on June 1
33 – Thomas Edgar of Australia v Canada on May 31
27 – Gavin Schmitt of Canada v Iran on May 29
26 – Milad Ebadipour of Iran v Canada on May 29
22 – Earvin Ngapeth of France v Poland on May 29
22 – Thomas Edgar of Australia v Venezuela on May 29
22 - Antonin Rouzier of France v China on May 28
21 - Kunihiro Shimizu of Japan v Venezuela on May 28
21 - Bartosz Kurek of Poland v Canada on May 28
Top Individual Serving Performances
7 – Nicholas Hoag of Canada v Australia on May 31
4 – Gavin Schmitt of Canada v Australia on May 31
4 – Seyed Mohammed Mousavi of Iran v Canada on May 29
4 - Kunihiro Shimizu of Japan v Venezuela on May 28
Top Team Serving Performances
12 – Canada v Australia on May 31
9 – Poland v Canada on May 28
Top Individual Blocking Performances
8 – Seyed Mohammed Mousavi of Iran v Japan on June 1
6 – Nicolas Le Goff of France v Poland on May 29
5 – Aidan Zingel of Australia v Venezuela on May 29
4 – Zhang Chen of China v Japan on May 29
4 – Chen Longhai of China v Japan on May 29
4 – Rafal Buszek of Poland v France on May 29
4 – Seyed Mohammad Mousavi of Iran v Canada on May 29
4 – Daniel Jansen Vandoorn of Canada v Iran on May 29
4 – Amir Ghafour of Iran v Australia on May 28
Top Team Blocking Performances
16 – Iran v Japan on June 1
14 – China v Japan on May 29
14 – China v France on May 28
Highest Scoring Sets
32-34 – Iran v Poland (4th set) on June 4
29-27 – Australia v Japan (3rd set) on June 2
44-42 – France v Australia (4th set) on June 1
27-29 – Australia v Canada (4th set) on May 31
29-31 – France v Poland (3rd set) on May 29
26-28 – Japan v Venezuela (1st set) on May 28
Highest Scoring Matches
199 – Venezuela v France 2-3 (21-25, 25-23, 11-25, 25-20, 9-15) on June 4
199 – Poland v Iran 1-3 (20-25, 18-25, 25-20, 32-34) on June 4
207 – Iran v Australia 3-2 (26-24, 22-25, 25-19, 17-25, 18-16) on June 2
117 – France v Australia 3-1(25-22, 25-18, 16-25, 44-42) on June 1
221 – Australia v Canada 2-3 (19-25, 26-24, 25-20, 27-29, 11-15) on May 31
221 – Canada v Iran 2-3 (29-27, 25-19, 25-20, 25-21, 16-14) on May 29
198 – Poland v China 3-2 (25-18, 17-25, 25-21, 18-25, 15-9) on May 28