Germany’s volleyball players got off to a dream start at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Rio de Janeiro.
Less than 24 hours after the opening win against Iran (3:1), national coach Michal Winiarski’s team also won 3:1 (21:25, 25:14, 25:22, 25:15) against world number 12 Cuba on Sunday evening . Germany is number 16 in the ranking behind the two nations.
Other opponents of the German Volleyball Association’s selection in the difficult Group A are world champions Italy (3rd), Brazil (4th) and Ukraine (15th).
They also play against the Czech Republic (20th) and Qatar (17th). The next game will take place on Wednesday (1:30 a.m. CEST) against the Brazilian hosts.
The best two teams from all three groups of eight will secure participation in the Olympic Games, which host France has already secured.
If Germany does not occupy one of the two required places, there would still be another chance to reach the world rankings. The German women, who finished their qualifying tournament in fifth place, are also hoping for this.
Against the more highly rated Iran (10th), Germany secured a 3-1 win (25:22, 22:25, 25:16, 25:21) with the fourth match point. “It was just a great game for us,” said diagonal attacker Georg Grozer, who was the top scorer in the opening game with 23 points.