Silver Medals for Bulgaria at the World Volleyball Championship

Bulgaria remained with the silver medals from the World Volleyball Championship for men. In the final, the "lions" lost 1:3 sets to the reigning world champion Italy, in the individual parts 21:25, 17:25, 25:17, 25:10. This defeat puts an end to the impressive series of the Bulgarian team in the tournament, but nevertheless, the silver medal is a worthy achievement.

For Bulgaria, this is the second silver medal in history after the one from the World Championship in 1970. Our country also has four bronze awards, the last of which was won 19 years ago. This emphasizes Bulgaria's permanent presence in world volleyball over the decades, despite the omissions in the team's performance.

The loss in the final in the Philippines was the first for Bulgaria in this edition of the World Championship. Our national team entered the trophy match in an incredible series of six consecutive victories. Nevertheless, the experience and mastery of the Italian team proved decisive. The match for the gold medals in Manila was watched by just over 15,000 spectators, who filled the Mall of Asia Arena to the brim. The tension in the hall was palpable, and the atmosphere was electric.

Italy took an early lead after a successful block in the center, but the Bulgarian team did not allow the opponent to break away seriously in the result and equality was restored for 6:6 points after great work in defense by Martin Atanasov and a successful attack by Alex Nikolov. The stands erupted in cheers with every successful attack by our volleyball players, demonstrating the great support from the Bulgarian fans.

Bulgaria managed to lead for the first time in the result for 10:9 after an unsuccessful attack by Mattia Bottolo. A little later, we led 12:10 after a direct point from the service of the captain Grozdanov. The Italians, however, managed to equalize quickly for 12:12 after an attack and playing on the block of Yuri Romano. Every won game was like a small victory in the battle for gold.

In the middle of the game, the Italians managed to break away with three points for 17:14, with the strong serves of Mattia Bottolo being the main merit, which made it difficult for the Bulgarian reception. An ace by Alessandro Michieletto led to a lead of four points at 21:17. By the end of the game, Gianlorenzo Blengini's pupils failed to make up for their deficit and lost 21:25.

The world champions started more effectively in the second part and after an unsuccessful attack by Martin Atanasov led 4:2 points. Bulgaria equalized the points after the eighth rally after a spectacular performance from the second position of Alex Nikolov. The mood of the fans changed with every point, and the tension increased. Bottolo's service, however, again came to the fore and the "Squadra Azzurra" managed to lead 7:4, which forced Blengini to take a break in an attempt to disrupt the rhythm of the opponent.

However, this did not happen, the Italians managed to open a difference of 5 points (10-5). After good performances in defense and successful attacks by Alex Nikolov, the "tricolors" managed to liquidate Italy's lead and equalized for 11:11. The fight for every point at this moment was extremely fierce.

The roles changed again and Italy in turn entered a series, which allowed the selection of Ferdinando De Giorgi to open a difference of four points (15:11).

Bulgaria tried to make up for the deficit, but when Romano took the service, the scales tilted sharply in favor of Italy, which managed to lead by 7 points (23:16), which subsequently proved sufficient for an advance of 2:0 sets. At that moment, it became clear that a difficult path to a comeback lay ahead.

The third part started extremely balanced and the result went point by point. A fragile lead for Bulgaria was secured by Martin Atanasov after a successful attack for 11:9 points. Alexander Nikolov managed to get the audience on their feet, realizing an extremely difficult attack for 13:10, and immediately after him, Asparuh Asparuhov increased Bulgaria's advantage to four points after a successful block. A direct point from the service of Martin Atanasov led to the most serious lead of Bulgaria from the beginning of the match at all, and a successful block by Alex Nikolov gave us an advantage 17:11. Our nationals managed to keep the advantage and closed the game on the first opportunity for 25:17. The delight of the Bulgarian fans was huge, giving hope for a comeback.

Italy managed to break away first in the result for 6:3 points in the fourth part, and the team's series swelled to 5 consecutive points (8:3). In these minutes, Mattia Bottolo showed himself very strongly for the champions, who managed to inspire the whole team. Blengini tried a change and put Anton in the game, who stirred the attack, but the "tricolors" never managed to make up for the lag. Moreover – the Italians accumulated an even more comfortable advantage and deserved the gold medals of the second consecutive World Championship. While the Italians rejoiced on the court, the Bulgarian fans had to reconcile themselves with the silver, but the pride in the team's performance remained.