Iran, South Korea and Japan to compete in AVC U-20 Men's Volleyball Asian Championship
China beats Iran in AVC U-18 Men's Volleyball Asian Championship final
Pakistan, with support from FIVB Volleyball Empowerment, wins bronze medal in U-18 category
Argentina, Brazil and Colombia win medals at CSV U-19 Men's Volleyball South American Championship
Three age-group boys' volleyball continental championships concluded last week: Asia U-20, Asia U-18, and South America U-19.
AVC U20 Men's Volleyball Asian Championship
The AVC U20 Men's Volleyball Asian Championship was held in Surabaya, Indonesia, with 16 teams participating.
Defending champions Iran and South Korea advanced to the final after defeating hosts Indonesia 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 25-16) and Japan 3-2 (25-20, 25-19, 21-25, 21-25, 15-11) in the semi-finals respectively.
In the gold medal match, Iran won three straight sets to give the West Asian team a 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-22) victory, while Japan beat Indonesia 3-1 (23-25, 27-25, 25-18, 25-20) in the third-place playoff to finish on the podium with the bronze medal.
The final rankings from 5th to 16th were: Kazakhstan, India, China, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Australia, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Kuwait and Qatar.
Iran's 17-year-old opposite player Pouya Aryaka was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP). The Dream Team consisted of setter Emran Kuk Giri (Iran), opposite Dauda Alayhi (Indonesia), outside hitters Shunta Ono (Japan) and Woo-jin Lee (Korea), middle blockers Taha Bebdonia (Iran) and Armin Gheritiniazi (Iran), and libero Kang Seung-il (Korea).
Results and rankings
AVC U18 Men's Volleyball Asian Championship
Sixteen teams participated in the AVC U-18 Boys Volleyball Asian Championship held in Riffa, Bahrain.
China won their first title at the tournament after five hard-fought sets in the semi-finals and finals. In the gold medal match, China defeated Pakistan 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 15-8) and in the final, they beat Iran 3-2 (23-25, 25-17, 25-19, 20-25, 15-10), who had crushed Japan 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-22) in the semi-finals.
Pakistan won the bronze medal after beating Japan 3-0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-17) in the third-place playoff (Main Photo, Courtesy of AVC). This is the second time the country has participated in the tournament. The Pakistan Volleyball Federation has so far been allocated a total of CHF 249,000 from the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment Programme for coaching support, with the majority of this (177,000) going to the men's volleyball team. In addition, the funding has provided volleyball equipment worth CHF 9,500. An additional CHF 10,000 has been awarded to the knowledge transfer programme.
The final rankings from 5th to 16th were: Thailand, Bahrain, Taiwan, India, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Australia, Hong Kong, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.
China's 16-year-old outside hitter Ding Haochen was named the tournament MVP. Setter Gong Haoqiang (China), opposite Yahya Muhammad (Pakistan), outside hitters You Xian (China) and Rahimi Mohammad Amin (Iran), middle blockers Bateni Mohammadnima (Iran) and Jablan Jablan (Pakistan), and libero Arabyarmohammadi Mohammadamine were also recognized for the Dream Team.
Results and rankings
CSV U19 Men's Volleyball South American Championship
The CSV U19 Boys Volleyball South American Championship featured five teams and was played in a round robin format in Araguari, Brazil.
Argentina and hosts Brazil were undefeated heading into the final match, which was a thrilling battle that lasted five sets before Argentina celebrated victory 3-2 (26-24, 16-25, 25-22, 19-25, 15-13).
The bronze medal went to Colombia, which came in third with two wins and two losses, followed by Chile, which came in fourth with one win and three losses, and Peru, which came in fifth with zero wins and four losses.
Argentina's outside hitter Federico Debonis was named both the tournament MVP and to the Dream Team, along with setter Felipe Mateo Santarelli (Argentina), opposite Henrique Gouveia (Brazil), outside hitter Diogo Pereira (Brazil), middle blockers Gabriel Pavlovic (Chile) and Murilo Seider (Brazil), and libero Ezequiel Parera (Argentina).
Results and rankings
