VOLLEYBALL – The Dutch volleyball players failed to pull off a stunt in their penultimate match at the Olympic qualifying tournament (OKT) in China despite strong play.
Poland, number 1 in the world rankings, had to give up the first set but won: 21-25, 25-17, 25-22 and 29-27. The team thus qualified for the Paris 2024 Games. The Dutch team had already been eliminated.
The Dutch started with playmaker Wessel Keemink, Gijs Jorna, Fabian Plak, Thijs ter Horst, Wouter ter Maat, Michael Parkinson and libero Robbert Andringa from Assen as a base.
National coach Roberto Piazza’s team won the first set, but then failed to maintain service pressure on the favorite Poles for a long time. In the fourth set the team recovered and even a fifth set seemed imminent. But after four set points that were not used by the Dutch team, the Poles still struck.
Tomorrow there will be a final match against Argentina. To still participate in the Paris Olympic Games, the Netherlands needs a high ranking in the world rankings in June 2024.