World Championship FIVB Women’s
Gold – United States Silver – China
Bronze – Brazil 4th – Italy
5th – Russia, Dominican Republic 7th - Japan, Serbia 9th- Germany, Turkey 11th – Belgium, Bulgaria 13th - Croatia, Netherlands 15th - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan
17th - Argentina, Canada, Thailand, Puerto Rico 21st - Tunisia, Cameroon, Mexico, Cuba
LEADERSHIP: Consistent outside hitter Jordan Larson-Burbach was one of a few key veterans who helped stabilize a young American roster in Italy. Photo: FIVB
Dietzen, who had knee surgery in December, dominated the net with 15 points and seven crucial blocks playing the memorable match on her birthday. She was not 100 percent in this tourna- ment. She hadn’t played with the National Team since May. But in the championship match, she and fellow Olympian Foluke Akinradewo, gave the U.S. a 14-9 advantage in blocks. Akinradewo scored 14, with 9 kills on 15 attempts, with three blocks and two aces.
The three majors are the Olympic Games, the World Cup, and the World Championships, which began for women in 1952. The U.S. has earned two silvers (1967 and 2002) at Worlds and three at the Olympic Games (1984, 2006, 2010).
World Championship
Gold-Medal Match History 1978 Leningrad
Cuba def. Peru 3-0 (15-1, 15-5, 15-11) 1986 Prague
China def. Cuba 3-1
(15-6, 15-7, 10-15, 15-9) 1990 Beijing
Soviet Union def. China 3-1 (15-13, 6-15, 15-9, 16-14) 1994 Sao Paulo
The final day was full of more history. Kiraly won his first of three Olympic gold medals 30 years ago in Los Angeles as an indoor player. China’s coach, “Jenny” Lang Ping also won a gold medal in the 1984 Games as her team beat the United States for the Olympic crown. Lang Ping coached the U.S. Women to a silver medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. On the road to the title match, this young U.S. squad with five players in their first or second season with the National Team, defeated Russia, the two- time defending world champion, twice, and Brazil, the two-time defending Olympic champion in the semifinals.
So after a three-week, 24-country tournament in Italy that saw the U.S. women win 11 of 13 matches, be a sizable part of 16,268 rallies in the entire competition and play in front of more than 100,000 fans the Americans would leave with the most important figure in tow — No. 1.
ALL SMILES: Middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo shrugged off a minor injury early in the tournament to perform at a high level. Photo: FIVB
Cuba def. Brazil 3-0 (15-2, 15-10, 15-5) 1998 Osaka
Cuba def. China 3-0 (15-4, 16-14, 15-12) 2002 Berlin
Italy def. USA 3-2
(18-25, 25-18, 25-16, 22-25, 15-11) 2006 Osaka
Russia def. Brazil 3-2
(15-25, 25-23, 25-18, 20-25, 15-13) 2010 Tokyo
Russia def. Brazil 3-2
(21-25, 25-17, 20-25, 25-14, 15-11) 2014 Milan
USA def. China 3-1 (27-25, 25-20, 16-25, 26-24)
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PHOTO: FIVB
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