2017 FIVB WORLD LEAGUE – GROUP 1
- Group 1
- July 4-8
- Curitiba, Brazil
- FIVB World League Finals
- Schedule/Results
Russia enters the Final Six with the #4 seed in the tournament. After starting the competition with a 2-4 record, the final week of play helped the Russian squad finish in the top-six of the World League.
Russia opened up their World League play with a 1-2 record after the first week of competition, winning their first match against Argentina but losing to Frane and then Bulgaria in five. Week two began much the same way, with a 1-2 record. The Russian dropped their first two matches to France and USA but finished the weekend with a five-set victory over Italy. In the final weekend of the preliminary round of the World League, Russia swept their competition, winning over USA, Poland and Iran.
Key Contributors
- Maxim Zhigalov – Zhigalov has been the top performer for the Russian crew having put down 128 points on 101 kills, 14 blocks and 13 aces. His output ranks him at #6 overall in points scored in the competition. The Russian squad will have to rely on his consistent output to stay in the Final Six.
- Dmitry Volkov – Ranking in at #27, Volkov has contributed 80 points in the World League so far on 63 kills, two blocks and 15 aces. His serving performance puts him at #2 overall in serving in the competition with 0.43 aces per set.
- Egor Kliuka – Also ranking in at #27 is Kliuka with 80 points on 64 kills, 14 blocks and two aces for the Russian crew.
Russia will need to rely on consistent output from the three players to stay alive in the World League Final Six. Zhigalov will have to continue to carry the team in the finals, adding onto his 128 point performance over nine matches.
Roster (* denotes 2016 Olympic team members)
- Sergey Antipkin
- Illia Vlasov
- Dmitry Kovalev*
- Pavel Pankov
- Roman Martynyuk
- Valentin Krotkov
- Dmitry Volkov
- Denis Biriukov
- Alexander Chefranov
- Egor Feoktistov
- Vadym Likhosherstov
- Dmitry Shcherbinin
- Alexander Kimerov
- Dmitriy Ilintkh
- Maxim Zhigalov
- Egor Kliuka*
- Ilyas Kurkaev
- Artem Zelenkov
Russia returns only two players from the 2016 Olympic team that placed fourth overall in the competition after losing to the United States in the bronze medal match.
Final Six Play
Russia will start off their Final Six play with Canada on July 5 followed by Brazil on July 6. Based off their results of the two matches will determine if they make it to the semifinals in Brazil on July 7.
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