Italian volleyball reigns supreme. Following the triumph of Alessia Orro's Italian team, the men's national team also won the Volleyball World Championships a few weeks later .
In the final, the Azzurri, led by coach Fefè De Giorgi , defeated Bulgaria in four sets by a score of 25-21, 25-17, 17-25, 25-10 . The first set was evenly matched, then from 12-14, Italy scored five points in a row and took the decisive lead. The second set was easy, with the Azzurri immediately taking a wide lead and closing out the match without any problems. The match began to get complicated in the third, when Bulgaria gained momentum, Italy slowed down, and suffered a 6-1 run from which they were unable to recover. A brief interlude, however, as the Azzurri rebounded strongly in the fourth set, immediately taking a 9-3 lead and dominating until closing with an eloquent 25-10 .
Today's third set was the only one lost by Italy in the knockout stage, which they dominated by beating Argentina, Belgium and the reigning European champions Poland 3-0.
For the Azzurri , the title won today in the Philippines is their fifth world title, the second in a row after their triumph in 2022. Only the former Soviet Union has won more, six. Therefore, Italy is world champion in the same year with both the men's and women's national teams . The only previous title dates back over 60 years and goes back to the Soviet Union in 1960 and even before that in 1952, when they managed to win both World Volleyball Championships in the same year.
The bronze went to Poland , who defeated the Czech Republic 3-1 in the third place final (25-18, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21).
Mattarella's invitation
President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella has invited the national team to the Quirinale Palace on Wednesday, October 8th, at 4:00 PM. De Giorgi's boys thus join Velasco's girls, who were previously invited after their victory at the World Cup in Thailand. "Congratulations and congratulations on your well-deserved victory. After watching the semifinal against Poland, I was optimistic about the final victory. I look forward to seeing you at the Quirinale Palace to thank you."
(Unioneonline/L)
