Turkey defends European volleyball crown, Latvia offered worthy resistance
Turkey's women's volleyball team retained the European championship title in Istanbul, beating Italy in a five-set final. Latvia's national team finished the tournament in 20th place.
The women's volleyball European Championship concluded in Istanbul on Sunday, with hosts Turkey successfully defending their title. In the final, Turkey defeated Italy in a five-set thriller, winning 3-2 (16:25, 25:22, 12:25, 25:21, 15:10).
Cuban-born Melissa Vargas led the Turkish scoring with 28 points, while Zehra Güneş added 12 points, half of them from blocks. For Italy, Paola Ogechi Egonu matched Vargas with 28 points, four of them from blocks. Ekaterina Antropova was Italy's second-best scorer with 16 points, including five aces, while three more Italian players scored between 10 and 12 points each.
Serbia takes bronze
In the match for third place, Serbia beat Poland 3-1 (25:21, 25:19, 15:25, 25:18). Tijana Bošković led Serbia with 29 points, supported by Aleksandra Uzelac with 15 points, while Branka Tica and Hena Kurtagić each contributed 12 points, the latter also recording five blocks. Poland's Magdalena Stysiak was the game's second-top scorer with 28 points, and Paulina Damaske added 12.
Latvia finishes 20th
Latvia's national team competed in the European Championship final tournament for the first time since 1997. In Group A, the Latvian side secured one win and finished fifth in its group, which was not enough to advance to the knockout stage. Latvia ended the tournament in overall 20th place.
The group stage of the championship was held across four countries — Azerbaijan, Czechia, Turkey and Sweden. The round of 16 and quarterfinals took place in Istanbul and the Czech city of Brno, while all four decisive matches were played in Istanbul.
