The XXXII Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan are 2 years away from July 24, 2018. This is the second time Tokyo has hosted the Summer Games, the first time came in 1964. The indoor volleyball competition will take place at the Ariake Arena. While the qualification process has not started yet, every nation who hopes to book a ticket to Tokyo is taking part in continental or world competitions.
What Does All This Mean?
With the World Championships just under 2 months away, there are plenty of events that will take place between now and when the torch is lit. Here is a sampling of the volleyball, the somewhat volleyball, and nothing to do with volleyball events that may take place. Hopefully this will put things into perspective.
Days Before the Games Commence: 731
Intercontinental Flights for the United States: 24
10 round-trip flights out of the continent for the Volleyball Nations League in 2019 and 2020 (luckily the USA is hosting the final round for the next 3 years) are needed. There will also be flights to and from the World Championships, the World Cup, and World Olympic Qualification Tournament. The NORCECA Championships will be in Canada, so no intercontinental flight needed, but they have not announced the qualification for the World Cup yet.
*This number could go up, but I assume the United States will qualify on their first try. With that being the case, there is no need to include the other continental or world qualifying tournaments.
The Current Season of Fortnite at the Time of the Opening Ceremonies: 15
Seasons of the popular battle royale video game last 10 weeks, but Epic Games usually extends them a few days. They are currently in Season 5, and there are probably going to be 10 more seasons in the next 2 years with 104 weeks between now and then.
Fortnite Wins the VolleyMob Squad Will Pull Off by the Time the Torch is Lit: 3
While we play about 12 matches each night, we are not very good. Somebody (whose name will not be mentioned) keeps trying to get us to drop at Titled Towers, and it always gets us killed.
Competitive Senior Team Matches Played by the United States: 76
I figure the United States will reach the medal matches of the next two Volleyball Nations League tournaments which is 19 matches each year. They will reach the finals of the World Championships, and that is 12 more matches, The World Cup is 11 matches, it seems that the World Olympic Qualification Tournament might follow the same format. Again, they will qualify the first time, so it keeps the match totals down. I assume they will take part in the 2019 NORCECA Championships unlike 2015, and that will add 4 more matches.
Times Micah Christenson Will Completely Own an Opposing Team’s Middle Blocker and get an Outside Hitter 1 on 1 With a Blocker: 2,128
Conservative estimate says that he will get an outside hitter all alone on the outside 28 times per match. This could go up if the United States goes 4 or 5 sets, but I assumed they will primarily earn victories in sweeps. That brings us to 2,128, though it could be closer to 2500. He is that good.
Amount of Times Someone on the Internet Will Claim That a Current Starter With Extensive International Experience Should Be Replaced by Someone Who Just Finished Their Junior Year of College: 24
While there are about 6 international tournaments between now and the Summer Games, people will make this claim at a rate of 4 times per tournament.
Number of People Who Will Collectively Say, “Oh Crap!,” When Wilfredo Leon Suits up For Poland in 2019: 723,000,000
While the population of the world is estimated at 7.6 billion people, it is safe to say 10% of them are die-hard volleyball fans. I then subtracted the entire population of Poland since they are all volleyball fans and excited for Leon’s arrival.
Number of Awesome Red “Las Vegas” Shirts Owned by Middle Blockers on Team USA: 1 But Should be More
Jeff Jendryk was spotted at a blackjack table in Vegas with some old friends from high school while on vacation before the team headed to Hawaii to train for the World Championships. Even though he was on vacation with friends, Jendryk was still gracious enough to take the time to talk to fans. In addition to being a nice guy, he was sporting an amazing red button up shirt complete with dice, cards, and “Las Vegas” printed all over it. Looking like it was purchased from a souvenir shop, it must have provided him great luck. There is no way a shirt like that can’t bring fortune to the person wearing it. It is essential he packs that with him when he travels to all competitions. To be honest, more people on the team should own similar shirts.
Kills by Matt Anderson for Team USA: 1,140
It is safe to say he will notch 15 kills in each of their 76 matches. While he may not play in all of the matches, there will be matches he notches more than 15 kills.
The Amount of Days Until the United States Wins the Gold Medal: 746
The amount of experience and youth coming up through the ranks of Team USA is phenomenal. The Tokyo crowd historically gets behind the United States (and every female fan fell in love with Aaron Russell at the 2015 World Cup). The team will be coming into its own, have the support of thousands in the arena, and millions back at home. August 8, 2020 will be a great day for fans of the United States.
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