The 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires opened on Sunday. (Photo: Copyright of Olympic Information Services)
Lausanne, Switzerland, October 7, 2018 - With the world's best youth players competing in Argentina, the planet's elite competitors will be performing at two sites in Asia for FIVB World Tour events in China and Iran.
The Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games began Sunday at Green Park in the Palermo district of the Argentinean capital with pool play matches. With 32 men's and 32 women's teams participating for 47 total countries, competition continues through October 17 when the medal matches will be played.
For the second-straight week, Iran hosts a Caspian Sea Series event with Babolsar the host site for the $5,000 event that starts Tuesday and concludes Sunday with the medal matches. The event in Babolsar follows on from the tournament in Bandar Torkaman from October 3-5 and precedes the tournament in Bandar Anzali from October 16 to 19.
China hosts its third event on the 2018-2019 FIVB World Tour calendar with the inaugural Yangzhou Open for men and women. Overall, China will host eight World Tour events this season featuring five double-gender tournaments and three women's-only stops.
In action last week, Brazil’s Rebecca Cavalcanti/Ana Patricia Silva each won their first FIVB World Tour gold medals by defeating Marta Menegatti/Viktoria Orsi Toth of Italy in the Qinzhou women finale.
In the men's Qinzhou gold medal match, American's Tri Bourne/Trevor Crabb captured the men’s title in their first FIVB World Tour event together by defeating Russia’s Taras Myskiv/Valeriy Samoday in the finals. It was Bourne’s second career World Tour gold medal and his first after sitting out 23 months with an illness. Crabb topped an FIVB podium for the third time.
China - Qinzhou, September 30-October 4, US$75,000, FIVB men's event No. 412
1. Tri Bourne/Trevor Crabb, United States, $10,000
2. Taras Myskiv/Valeriy Samoday, Russia, $8,000
3. Dries Koekelkoren/Tom van Walle, Belgium $5,000
4. Cole Durant/Damien Schumann, Australia, $4,000
Gold - Bourne/Crabb def. Myskiv/Samoday, 21-18, 21-9 (30 minutes)
Bronze - Koekelkoren/van Walle def. Durant/Schumann, 21-13, 21-13 (30)
China - Qinzhou, September 30-October 4, US$75,000, FIVB women's event No. 379
1. Rebecca Cavalcanti/Ana Patricia Silva, Brazil, $10,000
2. Marta Menegatti/Viktoria Orsi Toth, Italy, $8,000
3. Kelly Claes/Sarah Sponcil United States, $5,000
4. Ekaterina Birlova/Evgeniya Ukolova Russia, $4,000
Gold - Rebecca/Ana Patricia vs. Menegatti/Orsi Toth, 18-21, 21-15, 15-12 (44)
Bronze - Claes/Sponcil def. Birlova/Ukolova, 21-13, 21-16 (29)
The Qinzhou men's and women's podium
In the Caspian Sea Series event in Bandar Torkaman, Iran swept the podium with Bahman Salemiinjehboroun/Arash Vakili defeating compatriots Abolhamed Mirzaali/Rahman Raoufi in the finals for the Asian country's first-ever FIVB World Tour gold medal.
Iran - Bandar Torkaman, October 3-5, 2018, US$5,000, FIVB men's event No. 413
1. Bahman Salemiinjehboroun/Arash Vakili, Iran, $1,000
2. Abolhamed Mirzaali/Rahman Raoufi, Iran, $700
3. Abbas Pourasgari/Aghamohammad Salagh, Iran, $500
4. Alexey Kuleshov/Artem Petrossyants, Kazakhstan, $400
Gold - Salemiinjehboroun/Vakili vs. Mirzaali/Raoufi, 21-11, 22-20 (39)
Bronze - Pourasgari/Salagh vs. Kuleshov/Petrossyants, 21-16, 21-11 (30)
