Iran’s under-21 national volleyball team, for the first time in history, claimed the world title at FIVB Volleyball Men's U21 World Championship.
In a final match held on Saturday in Manama, Bahrain, the Iranian team beat Italy 3-2 to conclude the 20th edition of the international tournament with total victory.
Italians had defeated Russia 3 sets to 1 in the other semifinal on Friday night.
Iran had made it to the final four of the world championship in 2007 when it finished third.
“This medal means all our hard work during training; all our blood, sweat, and tears; all our hardships and pain. We have had extremely difficult preparation to win this championship,” said Iran’s captain Amirhossein Esfandiar after the final match.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani congratulated the young sportsmen on their success.
“The decisive victory of the Iranian youths in the world volleyball tournament heralds a bright future for our beloved Iran’s volleyball,” said Rouhani in a tweet he posted after the final match.
Iran has taken a huge leap in the world’s volleyball ranking over the past years. The country was among the six represented in a final round of the 2019 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League in Chicago, United States, earlier this month.
The Iranians beat Brazil in three straight sets in the semi-finals of the current tournament on Friday.
It was a close contest in the opening set, but Iran managed to overpower their opponents at 25-20.
The young Iranians kept the momentum and outscore Brazil 25-14 in the 2nd set, before beating them 25-17 in the 3rd.
