Romania Shocks Olympic Champs France, Advances to EuroVolley 2023 Last 16

Romania Stuns Olympic Champions France, Advances to EuroVolley 2023 Round of 16

In a surprising turn of events, Romania pulled off a stunning victory against the Olympic champion, France, securing their place in the Round of 16 at the 2023 Men’s European Volleyball Championship, known as EuroVolley.

Despite France already having secured their spot in the last 16 and resting key players, Romania’s victory is nothing short of sensational. The match took place in Tel Aviv, Israel, where Romania completed their five matches in Group D with three wins, as reported by Xinhua.

The intense showdown saw Romania taking the first set 25-23, followed by a comeback from France in the second set with a score of 25-16. However, Romania’s outside spiker, Adrian Aciobanitei, emerged as a dominant force on offense, especially in the fourth set. His exceptional performance guided his team to victory with scores of 25-18 and 25-21.

Adrian Aciobanitei contributed 20 points to the triumph, with teammate Alexandru Rata adding 12 points and Robert Calin finishing with 11 points, including five critical block points. France’s top scorer was Stephen Boyer with 19 points.

In another thrilling match on the same evening, Portugal secured their place in the round of 16 with a 3-2 (26-24, 21-25, 15-25, 28-26, 15-13) victory over Türkiye. Alexandre Ferreira’s winning spike in the fifth set determined the outcome.

Ferreira led the scoring for Portugal with an impressive 24 points, while Lourenco Martins added 23. Despite Yigit Gulmezoglu’s outstanding game-high of 33 points, including five aces, it wasn’t enough to secure victory for Türkiye.

The final two matches in Group D are scheduled for Friday, with Israel facing Türkiye, and Greece, having lost their chance to advance, playing against France.

The top four teams from Group D will join 12 teams from other groups, competing in Italy, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia as EuroVolley 2023 continues to captivate volleyball enthusiasts.