• KhMOMM Yerevan and MSKH Yerevan claim women’s and men’s national cup trophies in Armenia
• Omonoia Nicosia claim men’s golden treble in Cyprus
• Nantes Reze Metropole Volley achieve historic success by winning first men’s cup in France
• Olympiacos Piraeus’ men’s team triumph in Greece Cup for the 17th time
• Active Living Orion Doetinchem and Apollo 8 Borne earn men’s and women’s Netherlands Cup trophies
• Volley Amriswil and Viteos Neuchatel win national cup crowns in Switzerland
In six European countries, nine national cup tournaments came to an end within the eight days between Sunday, 31 March, and Sunday, 7 April.
ARMENIA
On the last day of March, Armenia celebrated its cup winners in both women’s and men’s volleyball. KhMOMM Yerevan, the team representing the Olympic Youth Sports School in the country’s capital, claimed the women’s trophy, while MSKH Yerevan triumphed in the men’s competition.
CYPRUS
Omonoia Nicosia claimed the men’s Cyprus Cup for the 10th time in history, celebrating a golden treble, along with the champions’ title and the national super cup they earned earlier in the season. In Friday’s final, played at the Aphrodite sports complex in Paphos, the squad from the capital mastered a hard-fought 3-0 (26-24, 25-23, 25-24) win over hosts Pafiakos Paphos. Cyprus Volleyball Federation President Costas Constantinou handed the trophy to the winners. Omonoia’s 40-year-old Brazilian outside hitter Robinson Dvoranen was named Most Valuable Player (MVP).
FRANCE
Nantes Reze Metropole Volley made their club’s history by claiming their first men’s France Cup trophy. In the final on 31 March at the Georges Carpentier hall in Paris, they followed in the footsteps of Neptunes de Nantes, who raised the women’s trophy on the previous day, and earned a 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 26-24) victory over Montpellier Herault Volley. After the match, the trophy was presented to Nantes by Federation Francaise de Volley-ball President Eric Tanguy.
Nantes Reze Metropole Volley’s team roster
GREECE
Some three weeks after Olympiacos Piraeus claimed the women’s Greece Cup, the club triumphed on the men’s side as well, earning their 17th men’s trophy in the history of the competition. In the final, played at the EAK Neapolis in Larissa in front of 1,700 spectators (pictured in the main photo; credits: Argiris Makris / intime.gr / volleyball.gr), Olympiacos squeezed out a nail-biting 3-2 (19-25, 25-19, 25-22, 22-25, 16-14) victory over Nea Smyrni Milon to crown the two-day final-four event at the end of March. The winners’ 34-year-old middle blocker Mitar Djuric received the MVP award. Hellenic Volleyball Federation President Georgios Karampetsos participated in the awards ceremony. In the semifinals on the previous day, Olympiacos knocked out PAOK Thessaloniki by 3-1 (22-25, 25-18, 25-16, 25-19), while Nea Smyrni Milon also needed four sets to claim victory over Panathinaikos Athens, 3-1 (25-19, 18-25, 25-13, 29-27).
Olympiacos Piraeus’s team roster
NETHERLANDS
The Netherlands Cup finals for men and women were held on 1 April at a sold-out Maaspoort hall in Den Bosch. First, Active Living Orion Doetinchem claimed the men’s trophy for the fourth time in the club’s history after a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-18) sweep of their game against Numidia Limax Linne.
Active Living Orion Doetinchem’s team roster
Then, it was the women’s turn and, after a 3-1 (25-20, 26-28, 25-22, 25-21) win over Djopzz Zwolle Topvolleybal, Apollo 8 Borne lifted their second national cup trophy.
Apollo 8 Borne’s team roster
SWITZERLAND
The men’s and the women’s Switzerland Cup finals were played at a sold-out WIN4 hall in Winterthur on Saturday. Volley Amriswil picked up the eighth men’s trophy in the club's history after a 3-1 (25-20, 25-22, 17-25, 25-17) victory over Volley Schoenenwerd. 20-year-old opposite Etienne Schalch was named Amriswil’s Best Player, while his 23-year-old counterpart from Sri Lanka, Mahela Indeewara Bandara earned the same honour on Schoenenwerd’s side.
Volley Amriswil’s team roster
Viteos Neuchatel dominated the women’s final and claimed their third crown in the history of the competition after a convincing 3-0 (25-20, 25-10, 25-19) sweep of their meeting with Volley Lugano. Viteos’ 25-year-old setter Meline Pierret received the Best Player nomination on the winners’ side, while 26-year-old Bulgarian opposite Simona Nikolova was singled out on Lugano’s squad.
Viteos Neuchatel’s team roster