Team Canada before a match at the 2010 worlds in Italy (Photo: FIVB)
Time has come for the Canadian men’s volleyball team to fight for a berth at this year's Olympics. Eight teams will vie for a spot in London Games at the Norceca Olympic qualification tournament starting Monday May 7th in Long Beach, California. The teams competing are: Canada, USA, Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, Costa Rica, and Dominican Republic. Team Canada is in pool B with the Cubans, Ricans, and Dominicans. Last time Canada's men’s volleyball team participated at the Games was in Barcelona 1992, placing 10th.
“USA and Cuba are the obvious favorites for this qualifier, but Puerto Rico and Mexico will also have their best players. We are prepared and will approach each match with great care. This is a very important tournament for us since it will be our only chance to reach the Olympic dream” head coach Glenn Hoag said. Only the winner in Long Beach qualifies for the London Olympics.
While we are now complete with the Men's Volleyball Pan Am Cup, it is now time for the Women's side of the tournament. This year, the Women's Volleyball Pan Am Cup is being hosted by Mexico in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico and will be running from June 19th through July 10th. There are twelve teams competing on the women's side of the tournament that have been split into two pools of six. Pool play will run from July 1st - July 5th with the elimination rounds to follow. The pools for this event are as follows:
Pool A
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Argentina |
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Canada |
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Chile |
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Cuba |
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Dominican Republic |
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Mexico |
Pool B
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Brazil |
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Costa Rica |
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Peru |
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Puerto Rico |
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Trinidad and Tobago |
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United States |
Canada's pool play schedule and Live Streams after the jump.
Canada placed themselves in competitive position after a solid Day Two in the Dominican Republic. (photo: chaimschalk.tumblr.com)
Day two of competition in the Dominican Republic featured tight competition between men from Canada, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. The only difference between those nations and those competing in the women's semi-finals was the qualification of Mexico, where the United States qualified for the women. It goes to show that early in the season, these nations have shown, at least amongst NORCECA competition, that they mean business.
The semi-finals had Canada competiting with Puerto Rico, and Mexico against Cuba. The format, as with the women, is a bit different from typical tournaments. Two teams from each nation, an A and B squad, move forward in the tournament together. For example, Canada A-Team plays Puerto Rico B-Team, and Canada B plays Puerto Rico A. After that, both B-Teams compete, followed by the A-Teams competing in the all-important final match (should it still be up for grabs).
Full breakdown of Tuesday's competition and the final's results after the break:
Imara Esteves of Cuba shows the kind of effort that was necessary to compete against the United States in Tuesday competition. (photo: fivb.org)The Olympic Qualifying NORCECA event went into the second day of competition on Tuesday. The format takes two teams from each representing nation, and pit them against two teams from a competing nation, with the winning country sending both teams forward. It's a somewhat different format than usual, which generally includes single teams going on regardless of how their country-mates fare.
Full breakdown of Day 2 results and finals brackets after the jump: