Grozer: “I can’t believe what we did”

Germany have significantly improved their chances of qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympics with one of the most surprising results of the Volleyball Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, so far.

On Tuesday, the Europeans, who are trying to return to the Olympics after missing the last two editions, silenced the Maracanãzinho with a shocking 3-1 (21-25, 25-19, 25-19, 28-26) win over hosts Brazil.

• Watch all matches of the Men's Volleyball Olympic Qualifying Tournament on VBTV

A key player in the German victory, veteran opposite György Grozer had a stellar performance, leading all scorers with 27 points – 22 kills, three aces, and two blocks.

“I have goosebumps, I can’t believe what we did here today,” the opposite said on his way out of the court. “I want to congratulate the entire team, it’s an incredible result and we’re still processing it.”

Volleyball Olympic Qualifying Tournament - Match Schedule and Results

The upset propelled Germany to second place in Pool A, with three wins and nine points. The Germans will have another key match on Wednesday, at 13:30 local time (20:30 UTC), when they will face world champions Italy, who sit at the top of the standings also with three wins and nine points. The top two teams in the pool will secure a spot at next year's Games.

“We can’t celebrate yet, we still have a long way to go,” Grozer added. “Italy will be tough opponents, we need to do our best to recover and take the positive energy from the win against Brazil to the court.”

Germany, however, will need to approach the last four matches of the Olympic Qualifier without their captain Lukas Kampa, who sustained a calf injury and will miss the remainder of the event. Jan Zimmermann will replace him in the German squad.

Quick links:
FIVB Road to Paris Volleyball Qualifiers
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