Latvia's volleyball team beats Slovakia in final warm-up before European Championship
Latvia's men's volleyball national team won a five-set thriller against Slovakia in Tallinn, finishing their preparation tournament in third place. The team now heads to Romania for the European Championship.
Latvia's men's national volleyball team wrapped up its preparation for the European Championship with a win. In their final warm-up match in Tallinn, the team edged Slovakia 3-2 (22:25, 25:22, 22:25, 25:22, 15:12) in a five-set battle, securing third place in the preparation tournament.
Kristers Landzāns started in the opposite position, having stepped in a day earlier for team leader Renārs Pauls Jansons. He was the match's top scorer with 26 points, attacking with an impressive 62% efficiency. Team captain Kristaps Šmits added 19 points, while Gustavs Freimanis and Eduards Dūdens each contributed eight points, including three blocks apiece. Jānis Medenis chipped in seven points.
After the match, Landzāns said the team's confidence has grown, praising strong defensive play and serving for a second consecutive day. He described the match as a tight, hard-fought contest where nothing was given away for free, noting the team believed in its chances throughout despite a back-and-forth flow. He expressed satisfaction at ending the preparation phase on a positive note.
The two teams' overall performance was nearly identical, with Latvia holding a slight edge in blocking. The decisive factor came down to execution in the closing stages of sets, where Latvia prevailed in both the fourth and fifth sets.
Head coach Uģis Krastiņš praised the team's fighting spirit and attitude during difficult stretches of the tournament, but was reserved when asked about areas needing improvement, stressing that recovery after playing thirteen sets is now the priority.
What's next
The team returned to Riga late Saturday night and will travel to Romania on Monday for the European Championship group stage in Cluj-Napoca. Latvia opens against host Romania on September 9, followed by matches against Germany (September 11), France (September 13), Switzerland (September 15) and Turkey (September 16). The top four teams in the group advance to the round of 16.
