The FIVB Men's and Women's World Championships are the
biggest and the best
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a truly global competition every
four years. An astonishing 215 men's and women's
national teams registered to take part in the 2010
event. The first FIVB Men's World Championship, held on
a repurposed outdoor tennis court in Prague,
Czechoslovakia, in 1949 was for all practical purposes a
European Championship, with all 10 teams from Europe.
From these humble beginnings started one of the great
competitions and traditions in international sport.
FIVB MEN'S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS FINALS
Czechoslovakia 1949
Final city: Prague
Date: September 10‑18
Gold: USSR
The first FIVB World Championship in history included
teams only from Europe, with six teams from the east and
four from the west (among the latter, sixth‑placed
France did the best). Czechoslovakia failed to repeat
its success of the year before at the Continental
Championship in Rome and were foiled in the decisive
match by the Soviets on their first international
outing. The USSR campaign was all‑conquering: in the
elimination round they powered past Belgium, Romania and
Hungary, and the in the final round they shut out
Poland, Bulgaria and France in straight sets. They gave
up two sets throughout
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one each to Romania and
Czechoslovakia.
USSR 1952
Final city: Moscow
Date: August 17‑29
Gold: USSR
India and Lebanon provided an international touch for a
World Championship that otherwise retained its European
flavour. On the courts of the Dynamo club, thronged by
approximately 25,000 spectators each day, USSR won more
effortlessly than expected. The hosts played eight
matches in the August finals and managed not to lose a
single set.
France 1956
Final city: Paris
Date: August 30 to September 12
Gold: Czechoslovakia
This time the formula was revised, with the elimination
phase divided into two‑ or three‑team rounds. Hosts
France were the only Western Europe representative to
qualify for the 10‑team finals, won by Czechoslovakia
with no defeats. USSR finished third, having to swallow
their first two World Championship defeats at the hands
of the Czechs and silver‑medallists Romania.
Brazil 1960
Final city: Rio de Janeiro
Date October 28 to November 14
Gold: USSR
Seven teams from the Americas, six from Europe and one
from Asia (India, Mexico and Dominican Republic withdrew
at the last minute) participated in the first World
Championship played on non�-European soil. Once again
USSR claimed gold, sweeping the final round. Third was
Romania, while Poland earned their third fourth place in
four editions. For the home team, there was the
satisfaction of the fifth place. Newcomers Japan placed
eighth in the finals.
USSR 1962
Final city: Moscow
Date. October 13‑26
Gold: USSR
A total of 15 five‑set matches in a total of 40 matches
in the October 13‑26 final round gives an idea of the
great balance between teams that characterized the
second Soviet edition of the Men's World Championship.
As had happened in 1952, USSR and Czechoslovakia again
took the first two places, with Romania grabbing third
from Bulgaria, meaning the same 1‑2‑3 rankings as in Rio
in 1960.
Czechoslovakia 1966
Final city: Prague
Date: August 30 to September 11
Gold: Czechoslovakia
Once again it was Czechoslovakia who kept the Soviets
from making it a third consecutive victory. Even after
losing 3‑2 against the Japanese (who also beat USSR and
set a record of six five‑set matches out of seven played
in the final round) the Czechs managed to finish top of
the tree with Romania second and USSR third. Notable was
the fact that only six out 28 matches in the decisive
round ended 3‑0.
Bulgaria 1970
Final city: Sofia
Date: September 20 to October 2
Gold: East Germany
This FIVB World Championship was loaded with surprises:
for the first time, USSR (sixth and Czechoslovakia
(fourth) were excluded from the medals, Japan was the
first non‑European team to reach the podium (third) and
Bulgaria led the standings right up to the
second‑to‑last day before giving way to East Germany in
a dramatic match lasting over two and a half hours
during which the Germans miraculously came back from
13‑5 behind in the fifth set to win 15‑13.
Mexico 1974
Final city: Mexico City
Date: October 12‑28
Gold: Poland
Poland took home their first world title after three
stunning five‑set victories over East Germany,
Czechoslovakia and USSR plus a tight 3‑1 victory over
Japan. For the Soviets, incredibly enough, it was their
third straight disappointment. Japan claimed another
bronze medal and for the first time Cuba could be
counted among the best with an eighth‑placed finish in
the October 12‑28 final round.
Italy 1978
Final city: Rome
Date: September 20 to October 1
Gold: USSR
The USSR claimed their first World Championship gold in
16 years while Poland plummeted to eighth and Japan 11th
in the September 9 to October 1 final round. Cuba and
South Korea (third and fourth) played starring roles but
the biggest surprise in this finely organised and
promoted tournament was the emergence of Italy who,
cheered on by 18,000 fans at Rome's PalaCur, gave a
masterclass in their 3‑1 semi‑final victory over Cuba to
finish in second place. It was a fantastic achievement
by Head Coach Carmelo Pittera's men and secured a place
for Volleyball in the heart of the Italian public.
Argentina 1982
Final city: Buenos Aires
Date: October 2‑15
Gold: USSR
The USSR success story continued as they claimed their
sixth world title in the October 2‑15 final round. The
Soviets were superb and an ambitious Brazilian side, who
finished with silver, were humbled when the Europeans
allowed them only 12 points to the Soviets' 45. Hosts
Argentina surprised everybody with the bronze medal but
Italy, revelations in Rome, tumbled from second to 14th.
France 1986
Final city: Paris
Date: September 24 to October 5
Gold: USA
USA claimed their first World Championship gold with
victory over USSR in the final, having lost to the
Soviets four days earlier in a second‑phase match. The
world title left the confines of Eastern Europe for the
first time with the Americans, led by legend Karch
Kiraly, rewarded for their combative and determined
style. Bulgaria stood out as they claimed bronze but
France disappointed with a sixth‑placed finish having
invested a lot of time in preparations for the final round.
Brazil 1990
Final city: Rio de Janeiro
Date: October 18‑28
Gold: Italy
Head Coach Julio Velasco's Italy, reigning European
champions and runners‑up at the 1989 FIVB World Cup, won
the gold medal despite a slow start. Andrea Luchetta and
his team‑mates lost 3‑0 to Cuba in the first phase of
the October 18‑28 event but then let loose by
eliminating, one‑by‑one, Czechoslovakia, Argentina and
Brazil in the semi‑finals on a 15‑13 tie‑break before
exacting revenge on Cuba in the final. USSR had to be
content with bronze.
Greece 1994
Final city: Athens
Date: September 29 to October 8
Gold: Italy
Italy made up for the disappointment of the Barcelona
Olympics in 1992 where they went out in the
quarter‑finals by retaining their world title at the
Athens extravaganza. The team
led by Lorenzo Bernardi gathered momentum as the final
round progressed, advancing from the elimination round
despite a loss to Japan, easily beating the host Greeks
and notching successive 3‑1 victories over Russia, Cuba
and then the Netherlands in the final. Joop Alberda's
Dutch team had beaten USA in the semi‑finals, with the
Americans settling for the bronze medal. Russia finished
seventh, their worst World Championship performance up
to 1994.
Japan 1998
Final city: Tokyo
Date: November 13‑29
Gold: Italy
The first Men's World Championship in Japan saw Italy
complete their hat trick of titles led by Head Coach
Bebeto de Freitas. The Italians beat Yugoslavia in
straight sets in the final, while Cuba claimed bronze
with a four‑set win over Brazil. Spain may have finished
eighth but the star of the tournament was Rafael Pascual,
who claimed the Most Valuable Player and Best Scorer
awards. It may have been a Tokyo final but this was a
truly country‑wide final round with matches played in
Fukuoka, Kobe, Sendai, Sapporo, Kawasaki, Uozu,
Hiroshima, Osaka, Chiba and Hamamatsu.
Argentina 2002
Final city: Buenos Aires
Date. September 28 to October 13
Gold: Brazil
Finally it was Brazil's turn to claim gold
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and in the
backyard of their South American rivals Argentina, too.
The final against Russia went to the wire with the
Brazilians, winning 15‑13 on the tie‑break. France,
meanwhile, claimed bronze with a straight‑sets win over
Yugoslavia. Marcos Milinkovic gave the home fans
something to cheer about as he was named Most Valuable
Player and Best Scorer in the competition. The final
round ran from September 28 to October 13.
Japan 2006
Final city: Tokyo
Date: November 17 to December 3
Gold: Brazil
The 2002 world champions Brazil defended their crown
with an awesome display of power and precision and
brushed aside Poland in the Tokyo final. The Brazilians
won 25‑12, 25‑22, 25‑17 and had their fans dancing in
the aisles of Yoyogi National Stadium's No. 1 Gymnasium
long before the victory was complete. The eighth‑ranked
Poles had dazzled throughout the November 17 to December
3 finals, but found World No. 1 Brazil too strong in all
departments. Brazil's talisman Giba won the Most
Valuable Player award. The Matey Kaziyski‑led Bulgarians
claimed bronze.
Italy 2010
Final city: Rome
Date: September 23 to October 10
Gold: ?
The 2010 FIVB Men's World Championship finals are in
Italy from September 23 to October 10. The 10 host
cities for the Men's 2010 World Championship finals in
Italy are set to be Ancona, Reggio Calabria, Catania,
Florence, Rome, Milan, Turin, Verona, Modena, Trieste. A
total of 114 registered teams are taking part.
Poland 2014
The FIVB has agreed that the 2014 FIVB Men's World
Championship will be held in Poland.
FIVB WOMEN'S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS FINALS
USSR 1952
Final city: Moscow
Date: August 1‑29
Gold: USSR
The Soviet women, who for three consecutive years had
won the European Championships, had no difficulty
dominating this first Women's World Championship, which
boiled down to a European contest aside from the Indian
team. Poland claimed the silver medal and Czechoslovakia
bronze at the finals.
France 1956
Final city: Paris
Date: August 30 to September 12
Gold: USSR
It was sweet revenge for the Soviets who crushed 1955
European champion Czechoslovakia and went on to overturn
a two‑set deficit against Romania to claim gold. The
Romanians had to settle for the silver and Poland bronze,
the Polish edging Czechoslovakia thanks to a better set
quotient. Countries from outside of Europe competing in
the August 30 to September 12 finals were China, North
Korea and USA.
Brazil 1960
Final city: Rio de Janeiro
Date: October 28 to November 15
Gold: USSR
This time the European teams were in a minority for the
first time with only four teams from Europe in the
10‑strong field. USSR's third straight world title was
again earned without defeat, although Poland came close
to beating them by leading 1‑0 and 2‑1. Japan took the
silver medal and Czechoslovakia returned to the podium
with a bronze.
USSR 1962
Final city: Moscow
Date: October 13‑26
Gold: Japan
Japan brought USSR to their knees in their home city
with an exhibition of agility and speed that surprised
the Soviets, who were still accustomed to old schemes.
Poland claimed the bronze, beating the best of the rest
of Eastern Europe, but it was Japan Head Coach Hirofumi
Daimatsu's charges who lit up the October 13‑26 finals
with a futuristic brand of Volleyball.
Japan 1967
Final city: Tokyo
Date: January 27‑29
Gold: Japan
With Lima withdrawing as organiser in 1966, Japan picked
up the pieces a year later. Unfortunately, the communist
bloc teams en masse forfeited, reducing the finals to a
four‑way event won by the hosts with little difficulty.
Silver went to USA and bronze to debutantes South Korea,
while the Peruvians were the other finisher.
Bulgaria 1970
Final city: Varna
Date: September 22 to October 2
Gold: USSR
USSR racked up a number of 3‑0 victories on the way to
gold but spoiled their chance of a clean sweep by giving
up a set to great rivals Japan, who placed second in the
September 22 to October 2 finals. North Korea matched
their Southern counterparts' achievements of four years
before by claiming bronze, thanks to a five‑set win over
Hungary, who finished fourth with an inferior set
quotient. The fourth‑ to 10th‑placed finishers were all
East European apart from Cuba in eighth.
Mexico 1974
Final city: Guadalajara
Date: October 12‑28
Gold: Japan
Japan and USSR were still too strong for the rest. The
finals brought to the fore a brand new Japanese line‑up
that rekindled the success story of the 1960s that had
been interrupted by the Soviets' world title in 1970 and
Olympic triumph in 1972. Japan easily beat USSR 3‑0 to
sort out the first two places and for the third straight
time the bronze stayed in Korea but changed hands from
North Korea (who withdrew from the finals) to South
Korea. Teams from the Americas (Cuba, Peru, Mexico,
Canada, USA) improved and all played in the round for
seventh to 12th place.
USSR 1978
Final city: Leningrad
Date: August 25 to September 7
Gold: Cuba
The Americas came on strong as Cuba earned the gold,
while USA placed fifth and Brazil seventh. It was bad
news for Europe, though. USSR may have claimed bronze
but the highest European team after them was East
Germany in eighth. The Asian teams held up well with
Japan finishing second and an emerging China placing
sixth.
Peru 1982
Final city: Lima
Date: September 12‑25
Gold: China
In the space of just four years, the world rankings had
been turned completely around. In Lima, the top three
places went to China (defeated at the start by United
States but then terrific against all‑comers), Peru and
USA
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all three teams big revelations in this
surprise‑filled tournament. Much of the 1980s was to
belong to the Chinese and the great Ping Lang, probably
Volleyball's first superstar.
Czech Republic 1986
Final city: Prague
Date: September 2‑13
Gold: China
Even without Ping Lang, on the bench assisting Head
Coach Shang Rongfang, China did not have too much
trouble repeating their Lima triumph. In the final, they
beat a young Cuban team, who paid the price for the
below‑par condition of star Mireya Luis, who had given
birth just a month before the start of the tournament.
Peru were third.
Brazil 1990
Final city: Rio de Janeiro
Date: August 22 to September 1
Gold: USSR
Twenty years on from their last world gold, USSR
returned to the top of the podium. Led by Most Valuable
Player Irina Parkhorritchuk, the Soviets allowed
themselves only one moment of distraction (a 3‑0 loss in
the match against China) before racing towards their
final triumph, beating China in four sets. USA took the
bronze ahead of the highly rated Cuba. The rest of the
1990s, though would belong to Cuba, who inspired by the
likes of Regla Torres and Mireya Luis, would win three
Olympic gold medals and the last two World Championship
titles.
Brazil 1994
Final city: Sao Paulo
Date: October 21‑30
Gold: Cuba
Six perfect matches, all won in three sets, earned Cuba
the title of world champions for the second time. With
Mireya Luis, Regia Torres, Regia Bell, Magaly Carvajal,
Marienys Costa and Lilian Izquierdo regularly on court,
Head Coach Eugenio George brought to Brazil perhaps the
strongest team in the history of women's Volleyball.
There was no hope even for the excellent home team,
overwhelmed in the final after a gruelling 3‑2
semi‑final victory over Russia (who claimed the bronze
ahead of South Korea). Behind the first four were the
excellent Germans.
Japan 1998
Final city: Osaka
Date: November 3‑12
Gold: Cuba
Led by Most Valuable Player Regia Torres, Cuba retained
their world title in Japan. Head Coach Antonio Perdomo's
charges won every match, against USA, Bulgaria, Italy,
South Korea, China, Brazil in the semi‑finals and China
again in the final. Russia downed Brazil in the
bronze‑medal match. The finals were spread throughout
Japan, with matches in Tokyo, Tokuyama, Matsumoto,
Kagoshima, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Osaka.
Germany 2002
Final city: Berlin
Date: August 30 to September 15
Gold: Italy
Italy rewrote the history books and took home the title
by defeating USA in a fine climax to a fine tournament.
It was their best‑ever performance in an international
competition. Teams such as Germany, Greece and Puerto
Rico surprised pundits by swooping into the second
round, but most of all it was the final between the two
unexpected candidates which launched a new era for
women's Volleyball. Enthusiastic spectators flocked to
the stadiums in record‑breaking numbers, with 285,120
spectators watching matches in the host cities of M�nster, Schwerin Dresden, Riesa, Leipzig, Bremen,
Stuttgart and Berlin. Russia claimed third place.
Japan 2006
Final city: Osaka
Date: October 31 to November 16
Gold: Russia
Led by brilliant trio Liubov "Sokolova" Shashkova,
Ekaterina Gamova and Elena Godina and with Italian Head
Coach Giovanni Caprara at the helm, Russia claimed their
sixth world crown and first since 1990 by denying Brazil
their first world title in a close five‑set final.
Russia had extinguished Italy's dreams of a repeat final
appearance in the semi‑finals with a 3‑0 sweep but the
gold‑medal match was a much closer affair, with the
tie‑break going Russia's way 15‑13. Serbia‑Montenegro
claimed a surprise bronze by sweeping Italy in the
third‑place playoff.
Japan 2010
Final city: Tokyo
Date: October 29 to November 14
Gold:
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The 15 venues tentatively presented to host the Women's
World Championships 2010 finals in Japan are in the
cities of Fukuoka, Kotie, Hiroshima, Osaka, Nagoya,
Nagano, Sapporo, Saitama, Kawasaki, Hamamatsu and Tokyo.
A total of 101 registered teams are taking part in the
Women's World Championships. |