Lausanne, Switzerland, May 8, 2019 - Kuzbass Kemerovo put an end to Zenit Kazan's five-year domination of Russian volleyball with a stunning 3-1 (21-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-23) win Wednesday night that clinched the best-of-five series of the Men's Superleague after four matches.
Viktor Poletaev starred once again, with the 23-year-old opposite scoring 28 points, including three aces and two blocks. Yaroslav Podlesnykh and Dmitriy Pashtickiy added another 10 points each for Kemerovo. Maksim Mikhaylov was Kazan's best scorer with 19 points.
The success was masterminded by Finnish coach Tuomas Sammelvuo, who now takes charge of Russia's national team to lead them in their 2019 obligations, including the FIVB Volleyball Nations League starting on May 31 and the Olympic qualifiers that follow.
"It's still very difficult to comprehend what we have achieved," said the 43-year-old coach after the game. "We are the champions of Russia and I am glad to see that people embrace each other, congratulate each other. After the first game in Kazan, we could have thought that it happened by chance, but after three victories we deserved it."
"Many thanks to the team, the players, because they are the ones who always perform on court - and they did it," added Sammelvuo. "Thanks also to our coaching staff and everyone who works at the club - they all contributed to this victory. Of course, the fans, our sponsors, and thanks to Zenit Kazan for putting up a good fight. I wish them good luck in the European Champions League."
It was the first national title in the history of Kuzbass Kemerovo. Zenit Kazan had been dominating the Russian scene with consecutive crowns since 2014 and another four between 2009 and 2012.
Quick links - Volleyball:
FIVB.com - Volleyball Nations League
FIVB.com - Volleyball
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