HCLT TOP 1000

Nice one, Vatreni. I have this match, but I was never able to find the gold medal match between Japan and East Germany. The Japanese team was led by a guy who’s considered the first of all great setters, Katsutoshi Nekoda. He was a four-time Olympian, won three medals (bronze in 1964, silver in 1968 and gold in 1972), and died young, at 39, of stomach cancer. If you ever find the 1972 Olympics gold medal match I’ll owe you some all-inclusive vacation wherever you choose. Look at those uniforms... Germans wearing diapers, Brazilians wearing spandex (very popular back then)... Those uniforms are ridiculous. The game was interesting though. Please, compare this match to some from the 80s and you’ll see how fast vball changes. Make a quick stop in the 90s and then fast forward to modern vball: Serve, block schemes and defense are completely different, and vball is obviously way faster now.

@pearl: I know you're brilliant, bella.

@przemek16: Poor Przemek… Did you feel bad? I guess the French felt a bit intimidated by your terrific English. Les polaks sont si drôles… Anyway, je suis très désolé pour toi. Next time, French it up! Do like my friend VoleiFuturo, who’s learning French. Here’s a video of his learning process. You can do it, Przemek!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqwzvtjeYBQ

@pearl: Damn it! I thought nobody here knew him. :-p He also played at 1980 Moscow Olympics. He was really a giant back then, when most hitters were around 1,90m. The 1978 worlds... That's when Italy started to make history in vball. :-) @MaskYs: Yup, the net had the same height: 2,43m for men and 2,24m for girls.

@Cyborg009: quando vi Itu no seu perfil, logo imaginei que fosse brasileiro. Suponho que você seja nissei, sansei ou yonsei, certo? Se quiser trocar a bandeira do seu perfil pela do Brasil ou do Japão, basta falar com o administrador, outras pessoas já fizeram isso. O VoleiFuturo às vezes bebe e coloca uns vídeos estranhos aqui dele dançando sobre as mesas em bares de Araçatuba, mas fora isso ele é um cara muito legal e se você não viu um jogo pode pedir que ele acha, nunca falha. O cara é ninja, manja tudo. Esse jogo aí foi muito bom, mas as alemãs deram mole, caíram muito de produção. Sobre o WGP, Japão e China só tiveram moleza até aqui. Aliás, o Japão sempre recebe uma mãozinha da FIVB. Foi assim no Mundial 2010 e nas Olimpíadas 2012, quando pegaram um grupo mais fraco (nesse último caso tiveram a sorte do Brasil tirar a Rússia do caminho nas quartas de final ou ficariam sem o bronze, se Brasil, Rússia e EUA estivessem nas semis). Gosto muito da equipe japonesa, é um voleibol muito plástico, bonito. Era fã da Takeshita. Quanto ao Brasil, a vaga é certa. O time vai somar nove pontos neste final de semana e totalizar 23.

Congrats to Bulgaria! Brazil played a really poor match. Even though we’re missing some really important players (Jaqueline, Tandara, Natália, Fabi and Fabíola) and other are still recovering from injuries (Sheilla, Fabiana and Thaisa), Brazil had obligation to beat the Bulgarians. Sheilla played really bad. After a set and a half, she hadn’t scored a single point. Unbelievable! She didn’t even resemble the player who crashed the Russians in London when the opponents had six match points and she killed six balls in a row against triple blocks. Her sub, Monique, is too young and inexperienced, and she played bad, too – Tandara was missed heavily. Our left sides, Fernanda Garay (hello responsible for the description on v-m, she’s known as Garay, not Rodrigues) and Gabriela were absent. Coach José Roberto Guimarães summarized well the game panorama: “We gave the Bulgarians too many chances and they did what any good team would do by taking them”. No doubt, it was a well-deserved victory by Bulgaria. The Balkanians have a good team, with a well-balanced attack, they just need more improvement on defense. Marcello Abbondanza is doing a great job in Bulgaria. Hopefully he’ll take the best from Kitipova. Anyway, it’s kinda funny reading some people’s reaction on forums, making the common mistake of looking at the result and ignoring the game. lol Interesting fact: Before Saturday’s loss, Brazil had won 29 straight matches against opponents other than the USA. Their last loss in the World Grand Prix to a non-USA team was against Japan in August 2010. Definitely congrats to the Bulgarian girls!

Pearl, Sartorace is proof that a player doesn’t have to be tall to be great. Andrea was an awesome server (he had Angel Dennis’ serve style for the same reason), an unstoppable hitter and a short-fused player. Another showman from Italy! Regarding his height, I don’t believe he’s 1,94m, but shorter. You know, only kids or non-smart people would blindly believe in every data they get from FIVB. Arjona, for example, is not taller than 1,80m. Murilo, though listed 1,90m by FIVB, is 1,92m. Leon, the Cuban phenomenon, is 2,05m, not 2,01m. Kubiak’s and Skrimov’s data are not accurate either. When it comes to spike and block reach, the inaccuracy is even bigger. Coaches have talked about this a million times. However, what really matters here is that Sartorace was one of a kind, another shorty to take part in the all-time greatest players club.

Handan, many talented players never cross the thin line that would make them one of the greatest. Back in 2005 USA Volleyball made a huge bet on Sean Rooney, look what he became, such a flop. Matt Anderson, though more reliable than Rooney, seems faded to the kind of player that will never be able to decide a crucial match. He’s very different from Reid Priddy, who changed from an average player to an essential one for Team USA, as the result of hard work. Anderson is really talented, but he lacks something. Take a look at Murilo. Several times Bernardinho emphasized Murilo is the result of really hard work. Roberto Minuzzi was better than him, but had to deal with a heart condition. Murilo was never talented like Giba or Lucarelli, but the boy, pretty annoyed by the fact he was only known as Gustavo’s younger bro, decided to step up. Remember Zaytsev. Once convinced he’d be just okay setting, though he had been called for the NT as a setter, he decided to become a hitter, and what a fantastic spiker he became. After four seasons as a hitter, he’s one of the world’s best. Apart his undeniable talent, he had to work hard for that. I remember some funny people celebrating Barto Cureque’s performance in second clash between Poland and Bulgaria in the last WL. That match was just a friendly once Bulgaria had already advanced to the finals and Polacos were eliminated. Cureque scored lots of aces in tie break, but the match worth nothing. BTW, he didn’t even lead his team to a victory that day, which makes his performance even more useless. When did Cureque do something relevant in a crucial moment of an important game? He’s always choking. Perhaps Anderson will make it, but he’s not so young anymore.

Sure, babe, you were talking about the 1990 worlds, not the 1990 WL. Gotta quit drinking. :-p Hopefully the Dutch federation will rebuild a strong team. They have potential, lots of talented players. That gap in the early 2000s caused significant damage for Dutch vball.

Hey Pearl, our friend Vatreni is the man. It’s stunning how he always dug up some oldies but goodies. Though I do have all these matches sometimes it’s quite boring picking one of them, I have a very hard time making up my mind. Maybe I’m just too lazy, but why worry if we have Vatreni. This match was great. Do you remember Ronald Zoodsma, a Dutch middle blocker? A lot of people only had eyes for Held, who was great indeed, but Zoodsma was really important, having a different role from most MBs. He rarely attacked, but his blocking and defensive skills (no libero back then) made him an essential player for the Netherlands. I heard his son plays for the youth Dutch NT. Zwerver was a showman, it was hard to stop him. BTW, you made a mistake. The podium in the first WL in 1990 had Italy (gold), Netherlands (silver) and Brazil (bronze).

I wouldn’t say so, Handan. Jaqueline is a solid player. Doing what she did in an Olympic final is fantastic, it requires a strong character. Besides, Brazil completely dominated Team USA, at some point it was like a pitbull playing with a doll. Please, watch Brazil’s 14th point in the fourth set of the final, it summarizes well the game pace: The Americans trying so hard to stay alive and the Brazilians outsmarting them. I agree with you about the Turkish MBs. Team Turkey would be a real threat to the powerhouses if they had better middles. Regarding the setter, apart from being incredibly beautiful, Naz Aydemir is still young and will get better every season. The Turks missed a big opportunity to grab three points as they lost to Japan in Ankara. I don’t think they can beat China this coming weekend, and then Italy on the next. The Turkish ride to the WGP finals is a bit complicated.

I think we have a rooster on v-m. :-p

Good match. I like the French league and I think it’s underrated, just like Bundesliga. French vball has given the world some really talented players.

Lang Ping is building a really strong team. After some bad results in the last cycle, China reappears stronger on their way to Rio 2016. IMO, McCutcheon biggest mistake was Nicole Davis, what a crappy libero. Brazil had a party serving on her. Although I really like Alisha Glass, she couldn’t have stopped Brazil in that final. Jaqueline destroyed the Americans. I was disappointed during the timeouts as the only thing I heard from McCutcheon was, “Let’s go, girls! You’re warriors, you can make it”. Hey dude, what about some guidance, a few instructions? Meanwhile, on the Brazilian side, José Roberto Guimarães was superb, pointing out every flaw on the American squad, after a disastrous first set by the Brazilians. As for Karch Kiraly, I hope he goes well, but not so well, if you know what I mean. ;-) What about the Turkish girls, Handan? Any new faces? Neslihan Darnel keeps being their main star?

What a great weekend for women’s vball, with lots of good matches. Brazil’s pool was a tough one with USA and Russia. The Polish girls could have beaten the Russians, but the Polacas lacked consistency in the end. Russia has some room for improvement. Brazil and USA made the last two Olympic finals and also the last three WGP finals. Yesterday both teams’ defense delighted fans once more. I must say I didn’t expect Brazil to play so solid, since coach José Roberto Guimarães (ZRG) is just getting started, we’re missing a lot of players, and the Americans have been longer on the road this season. Poor Karch Kiraly! I felt bad for him sometimes, like when Brazil scored eight points in a row. He and ZRG are so “zen” that I was afraid their players could take a nap during a timeout. Talking about “zen people”, Bernardinho must be proud. Many people laughed when he said Gabriela, a 1,76m left side who just turned 19, was gonna be one of the best players in the world by 2016. Last season, at 18, she put Logan Tom on the bench, and now, three years before the Olympics, she has already showed some talent. Any vball fan would enjoy watching Gabi play. Her class and smartness makes you wonder if she’s some experienced player. Her height and skinny body wouldn’t make you suspect you’re facing some real talent. Our “Bosetti” maybe will become better than the original one from Italy. The Americans have a great team. I’m sure we’ll see many more finals involving Brazil and USA. Alisha Glass is back and she’s way more skilled and faster than Lindsay Berg. That opposite Murphy is pretty good. That Russian girl Obmochaeva needs a shrink despite her talent – she’s a great opposite, too bad she has such a nasty attitude. Russia presented some really talented girls for this cycle. Zaryazhko will definitely be a top MB, joining a small club that has now players like Thaisa (BRA), Fabiana (BRA), Akirandewo (USA) and Fürst (GER). I usually criticize the Russian setters (it’s hard to forget Chinese Kun Feng laughing at Sheshenina and Akulova in the last decade), but that Matienko will help the Russians to make the opponents life harder.

Hola Beto! Yo no sabía que Milinka (como llamamos Milinkovic aquí en Brasil) sigue jugando. Fue un fenómeno como jugador y me gustó ver que hizo las paces con Weber y se unió al cuerpo técnico de la selección argentina. Ariel Kantor señalado aquí en la descripción es Waldo, ex-levantador y medallista olímpico? Espero que el voleibol argentino obtenga mejores resultados a nivel internacional este ciclo. El partido fue muy bueno. El brasileño Theo jugará por UPCN. Es una lástima que los juegos de la liga argentina non sean televisados en Brasil. Gracias por los juegos que usted ha publicado aquí.

Good comparison, Roninho. Paul Lotman reminds me of Riley Salmon, too. Did you know that USA previous coach Alan Knipe almost made Salmon their libero because of some trouble with Lambourne. I guess you know Lambourne isn’t the most professional player. Salmon is a great defensive player. Anyway, Lotman has potential to go further. As for the singers you mentioned, I’d rather be deaf than listening to Michel Teló or Gustavo Lima, they both suck. Fortunately we have lots of good singers here. Now that you mentioned this I remembered I never saw anyone here using Polaco music in their videos. What’s wrong with that?

Very interesting game, a bit slow for today’s standards, but Russia and Yugoslavia had some outstanding players.

Thanks, Vatreni! You’re always bringing some cool stuff. I have this one on DVD, but I’m too lazy to watch my collection.

Hey Pearl, you mentioned Fomin, he’s also one of my favourites. That Russian middle blocker Ohlikver played here in Brazil for four years. Another one that played here was Vlad Grbic. What do you think about Vujevic? He’s one of my all-time favourite players, with an incredible ball control, just like Nalbert or Nummerdor. On this video you can also see Chatunov, the Russian middle who was slapped by the Cuban Sanchez after the quarterfinal match. You certainly noticed a very young Tetioukhine. It was nice to have Platonov back, but he had missed something, didn’t bring the same power he showed the world in the 70s and 80s.

Paul Sunderland was already there as a commentator. How many names he butchered? lol

The arena that was home to volleyball at the 1996 Olympics, the Omni Coliseum, was demolished a year later. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYLaoLr02iY

Paul Lotman is one of my fave American players. Interestingly, his passing skills (and his powerful serve) are one of his main assets, but the video almost ignores this impressive quality (saw brief glimpses without any hard opponent serve). Imagine our beloved “Toll-door” Aleksiev receiving. Sucks, eh? Lotman does the opposite, passing is so easy for him that certainly annoys the opponents. Although he’s a skilled hitter, he struggles sometimes when facing tall blocks, still Lotman is a great player. Hopefully he’ll improve his attack this cycle. My friend Roninho, a Resovia freak, probably likes him a lot. People talk a lot about Anderson and Stanley (he’ll be back for 2013 Norceca), but Lotman is a key-player for the American team. I’ll overlook the musical taste. Shakira? It reminds me of my friend Joel2718 dressed like her and dancing “Hips don’t lie” at a college party – I had to pretend I didn’t know him. Embarrassing… I’ve seen some guys here enjoying Taylor Swift, Enrique Iglesias, Village People… Thank God for the mute button. Anyway, you’re getting thumbs up, once it seems really important here.

Sad? They have Bira, in case you forgot him. Beretta is a promising young player. As for Piano, he’s a sub. Coach Berruto is preparing other musical middle blockers: Cello, Flute, Maracas, Guitar and Harmonica.