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Post by BeiBei on Nov 16, 2006 2:46:06 GMT -5
I am so happy for Russia especially the older players like Godina and Sokolova
Russia was the bridemaid during the Cuban dominance. After Aguero defected, Cuba was not the same anymore. Yet at the same moment Sokolova left the team due to differences with Karpol and team like Italy and China capitalised on the opportunities and won major titles.
When Sokolova returned, it was Godina's turn to leave (differences with Karpol again) and Artamonova was injured and Russia was second again at the Olympics though they are not expected to medal.
Now that Karpol was gone, the good players returned and combined with fresh blood, the team won the world championship !!!!!!!!! Yeah
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Post by Murina on Nov 16, 2006 2:48:17 GMT -5
Ouch! No need to take shots at Karpol. I'm happy for Russia. I've never been a big fan of Giani but he is a very good organizer. I don't think Giani could have developed these players himself though. For Brazil this has shades of the 2004 Olympic choke at the hands of Russia. Mari's errors come when her team can least afford them. To me the slight increase in attacking is not nearly worth the expence in ball handling. Sassa should have been in the game! I was also surprised that Brazil kept serving Sokolova when Godina was exposed and sometimes in the front row! This seems like a mistake... Sokolova - I thought she had cost Russia the match when she hit the slide out wide near the end but she bounced back with 3 tough serves to win the match shortly thereafter. She's clearly the best player playing national team ball right now. Gamova - She may be the best sideout machine I've seen since Weishoff was playing well. Cograts Russia! P.S. I see USA beat Turkey also!
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Post by KO7 on Nov 16, 2006 2:52:43 GMT -5
I think this occasion calls for one of my favorite youtube volleyball videos: A tribute to Russia volleyball that I found...
When Sokolova hit that slide wide to give Brazil a 11-13 lead, I thought they were done for. Russia then goes on a 5-1 run to win it 16-14!!! Edit: 4-0 run to win 15-13? Russia's passing and communication were really suspect at times, but when you have outside terminators the likes of Gamova, Sokolova, and Godina it doesn't really matter.
Brazil's lovely Jaqueline and OPP Sheilla played a fantastic match, as did setter Fofao as usual. I agree with Murina: Sassa should've been in instead of Mari.
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Post by USAFAN on Nov 16, 2006 8:15:56 GMT -5
I'm glad the final came down to two teams who are playing their best volleyball at the moment. Can you really as for more than 16-14 score in the 5th game of a World Championship final? I think not.
Russia has really began to emerge after a all the comings and goings of their older players and it seems like the younger players and new faces have developed well enough to support their big guns. But Godina, Gamova, and Kilic are flat out dominant hitters and very difficult to defend.
Brazil on the other hand while I am sure they are dissappointed had a marvelous tournament and are playing a very high level highly effective volleyball right now. They still have a lot of youth with Sassa, Mari, Fabiana, Sheila and by 2008 they will definitely be in contention not only for a medal but for the gold which in the past few Olympics they may not have been ready to achieve.
I hope Americans who had a chance to see the match see how well big girls can play. Russians big bombers not only can hit but they are very effective servers and blockers and are asked to play all around. Also the Brazilians show how imperative it is to be a complete volleyball player. While they did win their last two matches, the USA showed that they aren't ready to beat the big teams and that there is a lot of work to be done. The vets performed well, we just need to work on getting the outside hitters to a level where they are scoring more points.
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Post by VolleyTX on Nov 16, 2006 9:31:13 GMT -5
Looking at the stats for Russia and Brazil, the biggest surprise was that Walewska only had 5 points all match. She is one of the best middle blockers in the world right now. I'm not even sure if she recorded 1 block. Espcially surprising because Fabiana was able to come up with 16 points. Also a dissappointment for Brazil was the lack of production from the second outside hitter position.
USA vs Turkey..... USA with 17 blocks.... Turkey with 4. Nice!
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