FIVB launches E-Learning Course on the Prevention of Competition Manipulation

Lausanne, Switzerland, April 1, 2019 – The FIVB has launched its Prevention of Competition Manipulation E-Learning Course aimed at athletes, coaches, referees and FIVB officials today.

The introduction of the course aims to minimise the threat of manipulation in future competitions and secure the integrity of volleyball, beach volleyball and snow volleyball competitions as a way of promoting family-friendly, safe sports for all. The completion of the e-learning programme is a mandatory requirement in order to participate in FIVB and world competitions.

Highlighting the importance of the course, FIVB President Dr. Ary S. Graça F° said:

"At the FIVB we work by the principles of good governance and sports integrity. Fair play is vital as we continue to work hard to become the number one family sport in the world. We would like to see thrilling matches with our athletes giving their best to reach the ultimate goals of becoming the champions. We take the competition manipulation issue very seriously and the introduction of the e-learning course is a big step forward in the fight against it.”

President of the FIVB Athletes’ Commission Gilberto Amauri Godoy Filho, better known as Giba, has been appointed Project Ambassador for the course. As one of the most decorated players in the history of indoor volleyball, Giba understands first-hand the pitfalls of professional sport:

“Sport manipulation is a very dangerous phenomenon. It sucks the spirit of fair play, ethics and joy from the game for all people on and off the field of play. No sport or team can be safe from sport manipulation by default. We, as athletes need to be aware of the dangers that exist and that can put our careers at risk. The introduction of the Prevention of Competition Manipulation Course is a great opportunity for all of us and I am very proud to be an ambassador for this project.”

The FIVB Prevention of Competition Manipulation Course has been designed by RC3 and Partners Consulting, a consultancy and education firm with renowned experts in the field of sport integrity and law enforcement.

Norbert Rubicsek, managing partner of RC3 and Partners Consulting said:

“Our educational programme that has been successfully developed with the FIVB provides the perspectives of sports manipulation with our relevant stakeholders, from the sports movement and justice to law enforcement and the betting industry. This collaborative experience with such a prestigious sports federation has been enriching and has resulted in a unique programme for all members.” 

VNL ANTHEM “WORLDS COLLIDE” OUT NOW!

Lausanne, Switzerland, July 1, 2019 - From today, volleyball fans all over the world are able to download, stream and watch “Worlds Collide”, the VNL anthem by Grammy award-winning Australian DJ duo NERVO.

The smash-hit anthem for the FIVB Volleyball Nations League (VNL), “Worlds Collide”, is available for fans around the world to stream, download and watch, just in time for this year’s VNL Finals. 

The song, recorded by Grammy award-winning Australian DJ duo NERVO, and released on the Thrive Music label, became the song of the VNL in 2018 and is, this year, available to download and stream on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon, Deezer and Pandora. 

NERVO, twin sisters Mim and Liv, are the most successful female DJs in the world, having written and produced some of the biggest club tracks in recent years. Fresh from winning the 2019 Miami Music Week IDMA award for Best Female Artist, NERVO have collaborated with the likes of David Guetta, Armin van Buuren, Kesha and Britney Spears. As well as regularly headlining the biggest dance music festivals in the world, NERVO have residencies in Ibiza and Las Vegas. 

“We are super excited to relaunch the single. It went down so well at last year’s VNL and the party atmosphere was great,” said Liv. “The VNL’s energy includes the fans and athletes from all different countries and cultures, which is what the song is all about.”

This year’s FIVB Women’s Finals return to Nanjing, China, from 3-8 July, while the Men’s Finals take place in Chicago, USA, from 10-15 July. After five weeks of competitive, round-robin pool play, with each nation hosting at least one round, only six teams from each gender will make it through to the Finals.  

Last year was the first edition of the FIVB’s innovative new event, which saw 16 nations go head to head in a round-robin format. The VNL’s party-festival atmosphere ensured fans became part of the action, with their energy and enthusiasm reflected in the incredible team performances on court. With courtside MCs and big screen replays, the crowd never missed a moment of the high-intensity action.

NERVO’s collaboration with the VNL is another indication of the FIVB’s commitment to leading the way in fan experience. In 2018, the FIVB partnered with IMG to produce all VNL video content in-house, in an effort to guarantee the highest quality of live broadcast and highlights for the sport’s global audience. Volleyball TV, the FIVB’s first over-the-top (OTT) streaming platform was launched, and more fans than ever before are signing up to make sure they never miss a minute of the action.  

Fernando Lima, Secretary General of the FIVB said, “We saw last year what a hit ‘Worlds Collide’ was with volleyball fans around the world, and it is fantastic that they can now stream and download the VNL anthem they love. 

“We believe that sport and music are a perfect combination. NERVO has always brought that party atmosphere to the VNL and they are great ambassadors for our sport.”

QATAR & RUSSIA SECURE FIRST MEN'S POOL CROWNS

Ahmed Tijan (left) and Cherif Samba celebrate a point against Beligum Monday.

Hamburg, Germany, July 1, 2019 - Highly-regarded teams from Russia and Qatar won their pools as expected here Monday at the US$1-million FIVB World Championships presented by comdirect and ALDI Nord.

Qatar's fourth-seeded Cherif Samba and Ahmed Tijan secured the first group crown by topping the list in Pool D with a 2-0 (21-15, 21-15) win in 31 minutes over 21st-seeded Dries Koekelkoren and Tom van Walle of Belgium on a side court at Am Rothenbaum Stadium.

The second pool champion Monday was third-seeded Viacheslav Krasilnikov/Oleg Stoyanovskiy as the third-seeded Russians posted a 2-0 (24-22, 21-11) Pool C victory in 37 minutes over 22nd-seeded Clemens Doppler/Alexander Horst of Austria.

A Mikasa reception for Viacheslav Krasilnikov as Russian partner Oleg Stoyanovskiy follows the action

It was a rematch of sorts in the World Championships as Doppler and Horst defeated Krasilnikov and former partner Nikita Liamin in the semi-finals at the Vienna 2017 World Championships. The Austrians finished second in Vienna after losing the finale to Evandro Goncalves and Andre Loyola of Brazil

“Belgium is a pretty good team, but I think we played really well and kept our side out stable all match,” said Ahmed, who is competing in his first FIVB World Championships. “We feel great now, to top our pool at the World Championships really means a lot.”

Samba, who placed fifth and ninth in the last two World Championships in 2015 and 2017, respectively, said winning the pool was "a great confidence booster for us, but we need to have a new mindset now that elimination starts because our jobs here are not done yet.  It was great to have these three victories and the way is open for us to keep going. If we keep playing like this, we’ll be a nightmare for any opponent.”

When asked about the setback to Doppler and Horst in the 2017 Vienna semi-finals, Krasilnikov noted it was different now since the "Austrians are not playing in front of their fans.  The atmosphere in Vienna was tremendous.  Clemens and Alex used it to their advantage.  Despite the loss, we still got a bronze medal."

BROUWER/MEEUWSEN BOUNCE BACK AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

 

Dutchman Robert Meeuwsen in action at the net in a pool play match at the 2019 FIVB World Championships Tuesday.

Hamburg, Germany, July 2, 2019 - For two days, Alex Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen stewed over their pool-play loss to Argentina in the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships presented by comdirect and ALDI Nord.

And more danger lurked, with old rivals Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena on the schedule with a chance to knock the 2013 world champions out of the tournament.

“Especially when I was walking away from here with the coaches, I was boiling inside, I was so angry,” Meeuwsen said. “Why do we play like this? And I wanted to do it over again and of course you can’t so the only thing you can do is two days later show what you’ve learned from it. And I think that’s exactly what we did.”

The Netherlands Olympians promptly took to Centre Court at Am Rothenbaum Stadium and dissected their fellow Rio 2016 Olympians from the United States with a 2-0 (21-19, 21-15) victory in the final Pool F match.

“I’m really happy we focused on the way we want to play, with passion, with heart, put everything on the table,” Brouwer said. “I think we played every card we have and to win against a great team like this it’s very special.”

Dalhausser and Lucena entered the match having beaten the Dutch in five of their seven meetings. The last time they met in this arena, the Americans scored a two-set victory to claim the gold medal in the 2016 Hamburg Major.

“Yeah, and how about the timing, when you need it the most?” Meeuwsen said. “It’s really sweet, especially after the loss of two days ago, we just did not play at all the way we wanted to play and we wanted to show the commitment in the way we can play and win games.”

The result also sent Dalhausser and Lucena teetering on the brink of elimination for about two hours, until Canada’s victory over Argentina allowed the Americans to sneak through into the knockout phase of the tournament.

And it left the Americans with a series of self-doubt. They opened the tournament with a loss to Canada’s Ben Saxton and Grant O’Gorman. Even after a win over Argentina, their performance Tuesday had them grasping for answers.

“I wish I knew. It just hasn’t been smooth,” Dalhausser said. “They served tough, it was a little gusty in there so maybe the ball was flying around. I think we scored enough points, but the sideout was the problem. It’s not very smooth, real choppy.

“I haven’t gotten in a rhythm. We played well enough against Argentina, hopefully enough to get out of the pool.”

“Hats off to Alex and Robbie. They played so tough,” Lucena said. “There are no excuses. Our last two matches we haven’t been at our best and it’s unfortunate in the timing. I don’t even know what happened.”

What might Dalhausser and Lucena need to reclaim their game?

“Put a firecracker under this guy’s butt, see if I can wake him up,” Lucena cracked, nodding toward his longtime partner. 

Even that might not have helped against Brouwer and Meeuwsen, who had as many weapons to attack with as they do vowels in their names.

“I think it was the commitment in all our plays,” Meeuwsen said. “You could see it in everything, our passing, our serving, attacking, blocking. The dedication to what we said, it was going to be do or die, it’s going to be all out. And if we lose because they are better, that’s fine. That’s the way we want to play and it showed.”

In a crazy pool, Canada emerged as the winner by two-thousandths of a point, based on point ratio. The Netherlands were second, leaving the USA to resume play among the lucky losers of the event.

The final 32 of the men’s tournament will be determined once pool play concludes on Wednesday.

FINALS HOSTS CHINA TAKE ON LAST YEAR'S RUNNERS-UP TURKEY ON WEDNESDAY

 

Nanjing, China, July 2, 2019 - 2019 FIVB Volleyball Nations League Women's Finals hosts and reigning Olympic champions China begin their campaign in Nanjing against last year's runners-up Turkey on Wednesday. China ended the Preliminary Round at the top of the ranking with 12 wins from 15 matches, despite being automatically qualified for the Finals as the tournament hosts. Last year's finalists, Turkey, meanwhile, claimed 11 wins to take fifth place.

The Preliminary Round match between China and Turkey in Jiangmen in week 4 produced a 3-0 victory for the pool hosts with Gong Xiangyu and Li Yingying leading the scoring with 14 points and 13 points respectively. Meliha Ismailoglu and Ebrar Karakurt both scored 15 points for Turkey.


Pre-match stats:

China - Turkey (July 3, 2019) 

Head-to-Head
·    China and Turkey will clash for the 11th time in world level major competitions. China won seven of the previous 10 meetings (W7-L3).
·    China have won six of their last seven matches against Turkey at world level, with the only exception a 3-1 defeat in last year's VNL preliminary round. Turkey's Hande Baladin won 27 points, at least nine more than any other player on the field.
·    Earlier this VNL campaign, China claimed a 3-0 preliminary round win over Turkey in Jiangmen on 12 June. Meliha Ismailoglu (15), Ebrar Karakurt (15) and Gong Xiangyu (14) led the scoring.

China
·    Reigning Olympic champions China finished in third place in the inaugural edition of the FIVB Volleyball Nations League in 2018. They beat Brazil in straight sets in the third-place decider (25-18, 25-22, 25-22).
·    China won 12 matches in this year's VNL preliminary round (W12-L3), the joint-most along with United States (W12-L3). China entered the 2018 final round after winning just seven of their 15 preliminary round fixtures (W7-L8). They finished in ninth place but qualified for the final six as hosts of the final phase.
·    Last year, China started the VNL final round with a 3-1 victory over Netherlands. Lang Ping's side came from behind to beat the Dutch 3-1 at the Olympic Sports Centre in Nanjing on 27 June 2018.
·    China have won 12 of their last 13 VNL matches, with the only exception in that run a straight-set defeat against USA on 13 June.
·    Only United States (18) have won more VNL matches in straight sets than China (16).
·    Zhu Ting (119) and Yuan Xinyue (119) finished the 2019 VNL preliminary round as China's top points scorers.
·    With 106 spikes from 208 attempts (50.96%), Zhu Ting was among the best attackers in the 2019 VNL preliminary round.
·    Zhu Ting was China's top scorer in each of their four final round fixtures in the 2018 VNL, combining for a total of 87 points.
·    No player scored more points in the 2018 VNL final round than Zhu Ting (87). USA's Michelle Bartsch-Hackley followed on 78 points.

Turkey
·    Turkey lost the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League final 3-2 against United States, despite taking the lead twice (25-17, 22-15, 28-16, 15-25, 7-15).
·    Turkey's second-place finish in the 2018 VNL was their second podium spot at a world level major competition, after a third place at the 2012 World Grand Prix.
·    Turkey won 11 of their 15 preliminary round matches in this year's VNL. They finished the 2018 preliminary round with the exact same record (W11-L4).
·    Turkey opened last year's final round with a five-set defeat against United States. Giovanni Guidetti's team took a 2-0 lead in sets only to witness USA fight back to 3-2 at the Olympic Sports Centre in Nanjing on 27 June 2018.
·    Turkey have played a total of 10 five-setters in the VNL, the joint-most along with Italy.
·    With 217 points, Ebrar Karakurt finished in seventh place in the 2019 VNL preliminary round top scorers list. Last year, only Meryem Boz (250) and Eda Erdem Dündar (238) won more than 217 points for Turkey in the VNL (incl. final round).
·    Karakurt (0.37) and Zehra Gunes (0.37) were among the best servers in the 2019 VNL preliminary round.

Source: FIVB.com